Paleontologists have identified four new fossil feathertail possum species (family Acrobatidae) from the fossilized specimens found in the Late Oligocene to Middle Miocene deposits of the Riversleigh World Heritage Areain northwestern Queensland, Australia. The four new species — two of them belong to the modern genus Acrobates and two to the modern genus Distoechurus — are the first pre-Pleistocene fossil representatives of the Acrobatidae family to be described.
The Acrobatidae is a highly distinctive family of small tree-dwelling marsupials.
The family comprises of only three living species: Acrobates pygmaeus and Acrobates frontalis of Australia, and Distoechurus pennatus of New Guinea.
Acrobates species inhabit coastal sclerophyll forests and tall woodlands in eastern Australia.
Distoechurus pennatus occurs throughout New Guinea from sea level to 1,900 m, where it is widespread in rainforests, as well as in regenerating rainforests.
These marsupials have distinctive elongate hairs that project down the length of the tail, leading to the common names of feathertail gliders for the gliding Acrobates species, and feathertail possum for the non-gliding Distoechurus pennatus.
They are omnivorous, feeding on a mixture of nectar, fruits and invertebrates.
“An analysis of extinct species found at Riversleigh World Heritage Area fossil deposits in north-western Queensland revealed that ancestors of both groups of possums were present in Australia by at least 25 million years ago,” said University of New South Wales Professor Mike Archer.
“As Riversleigh started revealing its prehistoric treasures, we discovered four different species of feathertail possums, the first ‘deep-time’ fossil record known for the whole family.”
The team’s analysis indicates that the new fossil species postdate the divergence of the Acrobates and Distoechurus lineages from each other.
As such, they provide a test of existing molecular estimates for the timing of the…
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