1.7" Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Jaw Section - South Dakota

Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Jaw Section - South Dakota #249293

Artist's reconstruction of Merycoidodon. By Nobu Tamura (http://spinops.blogspot.com) Creative Commons License

This is a 1.7" wide maxilla (upper jaw) section of Merycoidodon, an oreodont from the White River Formation of Pennington County, South Dakota.

There are two teeth in this jaw section.

Oreodonts are an extinct mammal most closely related to camels and pigs. They have no close relatives living today. They were herbivorous, with short faces and fang-like canine teeth. About the size of a sheep, they roamed the plains of North America in huge numbers during the Oligocene period.