Holmesina
Encyclopedia
Holmesina is a genus of pampathere
, an extinct group of armadillo
-like creatures that were distantly related to extant armadillos. Like armadillos, and unlike the other extinct branch of Cingulata
, the glyptodonts
, the shell was made up of flexible plates which allowed the animal to move more easily. Holmesina species were herbivores that grazed on coarse vegetation; armadillos are mostly insectivorous or omnivorous.
Holmesina individuals were much larger than any modern armadillo. They traveled north in the faunal interchange
, and adapted well to North America
, like the ground sloths, glyptodonts, armadillos, capybaras, and other South American immigrants. Their fossils are mostly found in Texas
and Florida
.
Pampatheriidae
Pampatheridae is an ancient family, now extinct, of large armadillo-like plantigrade armored xenarthrans. They are related to Glyptodontidae, an extinct family of much larger and more heavily armored xenarthrans, as well as to smaller extant armadillos...
, an extinct group of armadillo
Armadillo
Armadillos are New World placental mammals, known for having a leathery armor shell. Dasypodidae is the only surviving family in the order Cingulata, part of the superorder Xenarthra along with the anteaters and sloths. The word armadillo is Spanish for "little armored one"...
-like creatures that were distantly related to extant armadillos. Like armadillos, and unlike the other extinct branch of Cingulata
Armadillo
Armadillos are New World placental mammals, known for having a leathery armor shell. Dasypodidae is the only surviving family in the order Cingulata, part of the superorder Xenarthra along with the anteaters and sloths. The word armadillo is Spanish for "little armored one"...
, the glyptodonts
Glyptodontidae
Glyptodonts were large, more heavily armored relatives of extinct pampatheres and modern armadillos.They first evolved during the Miocene in South America, which remained their center of species diversity...
, the shell was made up of flexible plates which allowed the animal to move more easily. Holmesina species were herbivores that grazed on coarse vegetation; armadillos are mostly insectivorous or omnivorous.
Holmesina individuals were much larger than any modern armadillo. They traveled north in the faunal interchange
Great American Interchange
The Great American Interchange was an important paleozoogeographic event in which land and freshwater fauna migrated from North America via Central America to South America and vice versa, as the volcanic Isthmus of Panama rose up from the sea floor and bridged the formerly separated continents...
, and adapted well to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, like the ground sloths, glyptodonts, armadillos, capybaras, and other South American immigrants. Their fossils are mostly found in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.