An extinct genus of mammals belonging to the armadillo order, Cingulata
Doedicurus
Temporal range: Pleistocene-Holocene (Uquian-Lujanian) 2–0.007 Ma
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Illustration of a skeleton
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Mammalia
Order:
Cingulata
Family:
Chlamyphoridae
Subfamily:
†Glyptodontinae
Genus:
†Doedicurus Burmeister, 1874
Species:
†D. clavicaudatus
Binomial name
†Doedicurus clavicaudatus
Owen, 1847
Synonyms[1]
List
Glyptodon clavicaudatus Owen, 1847
Hoplophorus clavicaudatus Nodot, 1857
Glyptodon giganteus Serres, 1866
Panochthus giganteus Burmeister, 1874
Doedicurus giganteus Burmeister, 1874
Doedicurus uruguayanesis Gervais and Ameghino, 1847
Doedicurus gigas Ameghino, 1847
Doedicurus (Ancient Greek δοῖδυξ "pestle" and oυρά "tail") is an extinct genus of glyptodont from North and South America containing one species, D. clavicaudatus. Glyptodonts are a member of the family Chlamyphoridae, which also includes some modern armadillo species, and they are classified in the superorder Xenarthra alongside sloths and anteaters. Being a glyptodont, it was a rotund animal with heavy armor and a carapace. Averaging at an approximate 1,400 kg (3,100 lb), it was one of the largest glyptodonts to have ever lived. Though glyptodonts were quadrupeds, large ones like Doedicurus may have been able to stand on two legs like other xenarthrans. It notably sported a spiked tail club, which may have weighed 40 or 65 kg (88 or 143 lb) in life, and it may have swung this in defense against predators or in fights with other Doedicurus at speeds of perhaps 11 m/s (40 km/h; 25 mph).
Doedicurus was likely a grazer, but its teeth and mouth, like those of other glyptodonts, seem unable to have chewed grass effectively, which may indicate a slow metabolism. Doedicurus existed during the Pleistocene. Before this, South America had been isolated from the rest of the world, but the formation of the Isthmus of Panama allowed North American fauna to invade South America in the Great American Interchange, including big cats, bears, proboscideans, camelids, and horses. Doedicurus seems to have inhabited the relatively cold and humid Chaco-Pampean plains of northeastern Patagonia. It may have been the latest-surviving glyptodont, with remains suggested to date to 8,000–7,000 years ago during the middle Holocene, though these dates have been questioned. It may have gone extinct due to some combination of human hunting and climate change.
^Lydekker, R. (1887). Catalogue of the Fossil Mammalia in the British Museum, (Natural History): The group Tillodontia, the orders Sirenia, Cetacea, Edentata, Marsupialia, Monotremata, and Supplement. Natural History Museum, London. pp. 122–123.
against predators or in fights with other Doedicurus at speeds of perhaps 11 m/s (40 km/h; 25 mph). Doedicurus was likely a grazer, but its teeth and mouth...
other well-preserved taxa like Doedicurus and Panochthus. The brain cavities of the larger glyptodontines Glyptodon, Doedicurus, and Panochthus had a braincase...
being contested. In 2016, an analysis of the mitochondrial genome of Doedicurus found that it was, in fact, nested within the modern armadillos as the...
their heads. Glyptodonts also had heavily armored tails; some, such as Doedicurus, had mace-like clubs at the ends of their tails, similar to those of ankylosaurs...
paraphyletic based on morphological evidence. In 2016, an analysis of Doedicurus mtDNA found it was, in fact, nested within the modern armadillos as the...
2016). "Ancient DNA from the extinct South American giant glyptodont Doedicurus sp. (Xenarthra: Glyptodontidae) reveals that glyptodonts evolved from...
largest glyptodonts but not as large as its close relative Glyptodon or Doedicurus, the largest known glyptodont. Glyptotherium is morphologically and phylogenetically...
and the glyptodonts (car-sized relatives of armadillos) Glyptodon and Doedicurus, the bear Arctotherium and the sabre-tooth cat Smilodon populator. Skeleton...
with body length of 3.03 m (9.9 ft). The largest cingulate known is Doedicurus, at 4 m (13 ft) long, 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) high and reaching a mass of approximately...
Quaternary South America, a curious young Smilodon investigates a herd of Doedicurus and attempts to prey on a juvenile, but is warded off by their tails....
prehistoric mammals that lives in the Savage Land's jungles. Doedicurus – A Doedicurus is one of the prehistoric mammals that lives in the Savage Land's...
80 kg (180 lb). Much larger prehistoric examples are known, especially Doedicurus of South America, which probably averaged around 2 tonnes, though one...
supposedly led to the fusion of these rings, creating the tails seen in Doedicurus and Hoplophorus. On the other hand, Castellanos made Hoplophoridae a group...
Among the strange animals inhabiting South America are the giant armored Doedicurus, the trunked and camel-like Macrauchenia, the giant ground sloth Megatherium...
(2016). "Ancient DNA from the extinct South American giant glyptodont Doedicurus sp. (Xenarthra: Glyptodontidae) reveals that glyptodonts evolved from...
South America Cuvieronius hyodon 9790 BCE Northern and central Andes Doedicurus clavicaudatus 4765-4445 BCE South American Pampas Equus neogeus 6660-4880...
of many of the taxa from this era, with mammal genera like Glyptodon, Doedicurus, Toxodon, and others reaching their peak sizes. N. pseudornatus is found...
disease spread by introduced rodents. 4765-4445 BC Club-tailed glyptodont Doedicurus clavicaudatus South American Pampas Undetermined. 4691-4059 BC Algerian...
(2016). "Ancient DNA from the extinct South American giant glyptodont Doedicurus sp. (Xenarthra: Glyptodontidae) reveals that glyptodonts evolved from...
Palaehoplophorus is more closely related to other glyptodonts with caudal tubes like Doedicurus than to Glyptodon. Cladogram after Barasoain et al. 2022: F. Ameghino...
more closely related to glyptodonts with fused caudal tube tails like Doedicurus than to Glyptodon.Cladogram after Barasoain et al. 2022: Fossils of Propalaehoplophorus...
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