Bargain, 7.9" Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Skull - South Dakota

Bargain, Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Skull - South Dakota #243590

This is a 7.9" wide, partial upper skull of an Oreodont (Merycoidodon sp.). It was collected from the White River Formation in Pennington County, South Dakota and would be approximately 30-35 million years old. The rock has been sculpted to allow for a stable, horizontal presentation of the skull.

The skull still contains most of its molars and premolars of the upper jaw. While there is no significant gap fill restoration, there is a repaired crack through the anterior portion of the skull and through the left zygomatic arch. A section of the mandible has been exposed from the rock just to the right side of the skull.

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.