Juxia

Juxia Temporal range:
Skull and neck of a full mounted specimen fossil Juxia sharamurenense on display at the Paleozoological Museum of China
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Perissodactyla
Family:	†Hyracodontidae
Subfamily:	†Indricotheriinae
Genus:	†Juxia Chow & Chiu, 1964
Species:	†J. sharamurenense Chow & Chiu, 1964

Juxia is an extinct genus of indricothere, a group of herbivorous mammals that are part of the odd-toed ungulate family tree of rhinoceros and tapirs. Juxia was in the size of a horse. It lived in Asia during the upper Eocene. As an early indricothere, Juxia had a relatively light body, held by elongated long legs and small skull firmly attached to a relatively long neck. Based on its triangular like teeth and sharp protruding incisors, Juxia was probably a strict browser, feeding on ferns and leaves on branches where most herbivorous mammals couldn't reach. In terms of habitat, Juxia lived in densely lush and tropical forests of what is now China. Though a few skeletons have been found, it is unclear whether this early indricothere was permanently solitary or lived in small social groups, possibly harems. Based on its morphology, Juxia's long legs probably enabled it to run relatively fast for a limited duration. This was probably a defense mechanism against early mammalian predators.