Andrewsarchus
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Andrewsarchus Temporal range: Middle Eocene, 48–41 Ma |
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| A cast of the only known skull of Andrewsarchus, at the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Synapsida |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Clade: | Cetancodontamorpha |
| Genus: |
Andrewsarchus Osborn, 1924 |
| Type species | |
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†Andrewsarchus mongoliensis Osborn, 1924 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Andrewsarchus (/ˌændruːˈsɑːrkəs/) is an extinct genus of mammal that lived during the middle Eocene epoch in what is now Inner Mongolia, China. Only one species is usually recognized, A. mongoliensis, known from a single skull of great size discovered in 1923 during the expeditions of central Asia by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). Generally classified as a mesonychid since its original description, most recent studies recover it as an artiodactyl, in one study specifically, as a member of the clade Cetacodontamorpha, closely related to entelodonts, hippos and whales.
The genus name was dedicated to Roy Chapman Andrews by Osborn and it derives from the surname "Andrews" + Greek: ἀρχός (archos), "leader", "chief" or "commander". The species epithet mongoliensis refers to the region where the type material was found, Inner Mongolia.
The only known skull was found at a locality in the lower levels of the middle Eocene Irdin Manha Formation of Inner Mongolia, by the paleontological assistant Kan Chuen Pao during the spring of the second year (1923) of the Central Asiatic Expeditions (CAE) of the AMNH, leadered by the famous explorer and naturalist Roy Chapman Andrews. The skull is now on display at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
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