Trogosus
Encyclopedia
Trogosus is an extinct genus of tillodont mammal. Fossils have been found in Wyoming
, and date from the Eocene
between 54.8 to 33.7 million years ago.
Trogosus was a bear
-like herbivore with a large, short skull
and flat feet, and measured around 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) in length. It had large, rodent
-like incisors, which continued growing throughout the creature's life. Judging from the heavily worn molar teeth
, Trogosus fed on rough plant material, such as roots and tubers.
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, and date from the Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
between 54.8 to 33.7 million years ago.
Trogosus was a bear
Bear
Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern...
-like herbivore with a large, short skull
Skull
The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...
and flat feet, and measured around 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) in length. It had large, rodent
Rodent
Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
-like incisors, which continued growing throughout the creature's life. Judging from the heavily worn molar teeth
Molar (tooth)
Molars are the rearmost and most complicated kind of tooth in most mammals. In many mammals they grind food; hence the Latin name mola, "millstone"....
, Trogosus fed on rough plant material, such as roots and tubers.