Manis palaeojavanica

Manis palaeojavanica
Temporal range: 0.8–0.03 Ma
↓
 late Pleistocene
bones of Manis palaeojavanica (darker)
compared to same bones of
Manis javanica (lighter)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Pholidota
Family: Manidae
Genus: Manis
Subgenus: Paramanis
Species:
†M. palaeojavanica
Binomial name
†Manis palaeojavanica
Dubois, 1907[1]
Synonyms
list of synonyms:
  • Manis palaejavanica (Dubois, 1908)[2]
  • Manis palaejavanico (Weber, 1928)[3]
  • Manis palaeojavanicus (Dubois, 1907)
  • Manis paleojavanica (Raven, 1935)[4]

Giant asian pangolin (Manis palaeojavanica ["ancient Javan pangolin"]), is an extinct species of pangolin (from genus Manis) that was native to Asia.[5]

In 1926, E. Dubois described the bones of M. palaeojavanica discovered in Java. Later, Lord Medway excavated another set of bones at the Niah Caves in Malaysia. In 1960, D. A. Hoojier identified these bones as that of an extinct species. Using carbon dating, the Niah Caves bones were determined to be 42,000–47,000 years old.[6]

M. palaeojavanica is one of the only known fossils to be found nearly complete of the pangolin species, due to their armour-like scales that protected their bodies when they were alive.[7] Its total length is measured up to 2.5 m (8.2 ft).[8]

  1. ^ Dubois, E. (1907.) "Eenige van Nederlandschen kant verkregen uitkomsten met betrekking tot de kennis der Kendeng-fauna (Fauna van Trinil)." Tijdschr. Kon. Ned. Aardr. Gen., Serie 2 (24):449-458
  2. ^ Dubois, E. (1908.) "Das Geologische Alter der Kendengoder Trinil-Fauna." Tijdschr. Kon. Ned. Aardr. Gen., Serie 2 (25):1235-1270, pl. 39.
  3. ^ Max Weber (1928.) "Die Säugetiere", vol. 2, Jena, p. 185
  4. ^ Raven, Henry Cushier (1935.) "Wallace's line and the distribution of Indo-Australian mammals." Bulletin of the AMNH; v. 68, article 4
  5. ^ John C. Barentine (2016). Uncharted Constellations: Asterisms, Single-Source and Rebrands. Springer. p. 186. ISBN 978-3-319-27619-9.
  6. ^ Quentin Phillipps; Karen Phillipps (2016). Phillipps' Field Guide to the Mammals of Borneo and Their Ecology: Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan. Princeton University Press. p. 153. ISBN 978-0-691-16941-5.
  7. ^ Gaudin, Timothy J.; Emry, Robert J.; Wible, John R. (December 2009). "The Phylogeny of Living and Extinct Pangolins (Mammalia, Pholidota) and Associated Taxa: A Morphology Based Analysis". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 16 (4): 235–305. doi:10.1007/s10914-009-9119-9. ISSN 1064-7554. S2CID 1773698.
  8. ^ Hooijer, D.A., 1947 - A femur of Manis palaeojavanica Dubois from Western Java - Proceedings of the Koninklijke Nederlandsche Akademie van Wetenschappen 50 (4): 423-418