Parocnus is an extinct genus of sloth native to Cuba and Hispaniola, belonging to the family Megalocnidae. It was a terrestrial ground sloth, being the second largest Caribbean sloth after Megalocnus,[1] with the body mass of the various species of the genus estimated at around 32–79 kilograms (71–174 lb),[2] comparable to a pig.[3]

Parocnus
Temporal range: Late Pleistocene–Holocene
Skeleton of Parocnus dominicanus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Pilosa
Family: Megalocnidae
Genus: Parocnus
Miller 1929
Species

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Closeup of the skull with the jugal bone missing

Taxonomy

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After[4]

  • Parocnus browni Pleistocene to Holocene, Cuba
  • Parocnus serus Pleistocene to Holocene, Hispaniola (synonym Megalocnus zile)[1]
  • Parocnus dominicanus Pleistocene to Holocene, Hispaniola[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b McAfee, Robert K.; Beery, Sophia M. (2021-03-04). "Intraspecific variation of Megalonychid sloths from Hispaniola and the taxonomic implications". Historical Biology. 33 (3): 371–386. Bibcode:2021HBio...33..371M. doi:10.1080/08912963.2019.1618294. ISSN 0891-2963. S2CID 195403443.371-386&rft.date=2021-03-04&rft_id=info:doi/10.1080/08912963.2019.1618294&rft_id=https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:195403443#id-name=S2CID&rft.issn=0891-2963&rft_id=info:bibcode/2021HBio...33..371M&rft.aulast=McAfee&rft.aufirst=Robert K.&rft.au=Beery, Sophia M.&rft_id=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08912963.2019.1618294&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Parocnus" class="Z3988">
  2. ^ McDonald, H. Gregory (June 2023). "A Tale of Two Continents (and a Few Islands): Ecology and Distribution of Late Pleistocene Sloths". Land. 12 (6): 1192. doi:10.3390/land12061192. ISSN 2073-445X.
  3. ^ Gaudin, Timothy J.; Scaife, Thomas (March 2023). "Cranial osteology of a juvenile specimen of Acratocnus ye (Mammalia, Xenarthra, Folivora) and its ontogenetic and phylogenetic implications". The Anatomical Record. 306 (3): 607–637. doi:10.1002/ar.25062. ISSN 1932-8486. PMID 36054593.607-637&rft.date=2023-03&rft.issn=1932-8486&rft_id=info:pmid/36054593&rft_id=info:doi/10.1002/ar.25062&rft.aulast=Gaudin&rft.aufirst=Timothy J.&rft.au=Scaife, Thomas&rft_id=https://anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ar.25062&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Parocnus" class="Z3988">
  4. ^ White, J.L.; MacPhee, R.D.E. (2001). "The sloths of the West Indies: a systematic and phylogenetic review". In Woods, C. A.; Sergile, F. E. (eds.). Biogeography of the West Indies: Patterns and Perspectives. Boca Raton, London, New York, and Washington, D.C.: CRC Press. pp. 201–235. doi:10.1201/9781420039481-14. ISBN 978-0-8493-2001-9.201-235&rft.pub=CRC Press&rft.date=2001&rft_id=info:doi/10.1201/9781420039481-14&rft.isbn=978-0-8493-2001-9&rft.aulast=White&rft.aufirst=J.L.&rft.au=MacPhee, R.D.E.&rft_id=https://books.google.com/books?id=f33LBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA201&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Parocnus" class="Z3988">
  5. ^ McAfee, Robert; Beery, Sophia; Rimoli, Renato; Almonte, Juan; Lehman, Phillip; Cooke, Siobhan (2021-08-31). "New species of the ground sloth Parocnus from the late Pleistocene-early Holocene of Hispaniola". Vertebrate Anatomy Morphology Palaeontology. 9 (1). doi:10.18435/vamp29369. ISSN 2292-1389.