Orophodontidae
Encyclopedia
Orophodontidae is a family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 of extinct ground sloths within the order of Pilosa
Pilosa
The order Pilosa is a group of placental mammals, extant today only in the Americas. It includes the anteaters and sloths, including the recently extinct ground sloths....

 and suborder Folivora. The name is often disused with genus members reassigned.

This family is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae
Megatheriidae
Megatheriidae is a family of extinct ground sloths that lived from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately .Megatheriids appeared later in the Oligocene, some 30 million years ago, also in South America. The group includes the heavily-built Megatherium and Eremotherium...

, the Mylodontidae
Mylodontidae
Mylodontidae is a family of extinct mammals within the order of Pilosa and suborder Folivora living from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately . This family of ground sloths is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae, the...

, the Nothrotheriidae, and the Scelidotheriidae
Scelidotheriidae
Scelidotheriidae is a family of extinct mammals within the order of Pilosa and suborder Folivora. This family of ground sloths is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae, the Mylodontidae, the Nothrotheriidae, and the Orophodontidae...

. The only extant families of the suborder Folivora are the Bradypodidae and the Megalonychidae
Megalonychidae
Megalonychidae is a group of sloths including the extinct Megalonyx and the living two toed sloths. Megalonychids first appeared in the early Oligocene, about 35 million years ago, in southern Argentina , and spread as far as the Antilles by the early Miocene...

.

The orophodontids constitute a rather small but quite distinct group. They are classified as a distinct mylodontan superfamily
Taxonomic rank
In biological classification, rank is the level in a taxonomic hierarchy. Examples of taxonomic ranks are species, genus, family, and class. Each rank subsumes under it a number of less general categories...

 Orophodontoidea, the sister taxon to the Mylodontoidea.

†Orophodontidae members prior to reassignment.
  • Genus Proplatyarthrus
    Proplatyarthrus
    Proplatyarthrus is an extinct genus of actively mobile ground sloth of the family Mylodontidae, endemic to South America.-Taxonomy:Proplatyarthrus was named by Ameghino . It was assigned to Megalonychidae by Carroll Proplatyarthrus is an extinct genus of actively mobile ground sloth of the family...

    , (Megalonychidae
    Megalonychidae
    Megalonychidae is a group of sloths including the extinct Megalonyx and the living two toed sloths. Megalonychids first appeared in the early Oligocene, about 35 million years ago, in southern Argentina , and spread as far as the Antilles by the early Miocene...

    )
  • Genus Orophodon
    Orophodon
    Orophodon is an extinct genus of actively mobile ground sloth of the family Mylodontidae, endemic to South America.-Taxonomy:Orophodon was named by Ameghino . It was assigned to Mylodontidae by Carroll ....

    , (Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae is a family of extinct mammals within the order of Pilosa and suborder Folivora living from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately . This family of ground sloths is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae, the...

    )
  • Genus Octodontotherium
    Octodontotherium
    Octodontotherium is an extinct genus of actively mobile ground sloth of the family Mylodontidae, endemic to South America during the Oligocene-Miocene. It lived from 29—21 mya, existing for approximately ....

    , (Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae is a family of extinct mammals within the order of Pilosa and suborder Folivora living from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately . This family of ground sloths is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae, the...

    )
  • Genus Octomylodon
    Octomylodon
    Octomylodon is an extinct genus of actively mobile ground sloth of the family Mylodontidae living during the Miocene-Pleistocene. The family Mylodontidae lived in North America and South America from 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately ....

    , (Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae
    Mylodontidae is a family of extinct mammals within the order of Pilosa and suborder Folivora living from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago, existing for approximately . This family of ground sloths is related to the other families of extinct ground sloths, being the Megatheriidae, the...

    )
  • Genus Octodontobradys

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