4.5" Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Skull - South Dakota

Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Skull - South Dakota #207470

This is a 4.5" long skull of an oreodont (Merycoidodon culbertsoni). It was collected from the White River Formation in Pennington County, South Dakota and would be approximately 30-35 million years old. The bone/teeth preservation of this skull is beautiful considering most of these skulls are typically found crushed and heavily fragmented.

Comes with an acrylic display stand to assist with presentation.

Both maxillas have been restored, along with some restoration to the right zygomatic arch and the nuchal crest. The right side of the mandible is in excellent condition with minor restoration at the joint. Restoration of the left side of the mandible can be found along the ramus and continues upward through the joint. All of the molars, premolars, and the left lower canine are natural, though the remaining canines and incisors have all been restored.

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

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.