Giant finger animal

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Giant finger animal
Systematics
Order : Primates (Primates)
Subordination : Wet-nose primates (Strepsirrhini)
Partial order : Chiromyiformes
Family : Daubentoniidae
Genre : Daubentonia
Type : Giant finger animal
Scientific name
Daubentonia robusta
Lamberton , 1935

The giant finger animal ( Daubentonia robusta ) is an extinct primate species . It was closely related to the finger animal , but was significantly larger.

So far, only a few bones of the trunk skeleton and individual teeth have been discovered; the findings indicate that the giant finger animal was around 30% larger than its current relative. His weight was estimated to be three to five times as much, averaging 13.5 kilograms.

Subfossil remains of the giant finger animal are known from the southern and southwestern regions of Madagascar , from regions in which the finger animal does not occur. Its habitat was significantly drier than that of today's animal, nothing is known about its way of life.

Finds indicate that the giant finger animal's teeth were processed and used for decorative purposes, which suggests that the species survived at least until the arrival of humans on Madagascar around 1500 years ago. It is unclear whether and to what extent human influence is responsible for the extinction of the species.

literature

  • Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .

Web links