![]() ![]() These teeth are very similar to the teeth seen in mesonychids, an extinct group of semi-aquatic carnivorous ungulates, and resemble, to a lesser degree, the teeth of seals. Sue I have never seen a wild beaver but I have seen platypus. These first molars were also recurved in a manner designed to hold slippery prey once grasped. Forget the wilderness ‘Beavers live in inner city Calgary’ read the headlines in my imagination. This feature of three cusps in a row is similar to the ancestral condition in mammal relatives (as seen in triconodonts), but is almost certainly a derived character in Castorocauda. Latin for beaver tail and similarity to the otter. Of course, a real platypus tail looks nothing like a beaver's tail, but that doesn't stop the majority of cartoon depictions from showing one anyway, often complete with thumping behavior. The first two molars had cusps in a straight row, eliminating the grinding function suggesting that they were strictly for gripping and not for chewing. Its likely lifestyle - burrowing in tunnels on shore and dog-paddling in water - reminds scientists of the modern platypus. Beavers live in lodges while platypuses live in burrows. Early European settlers sometimes referred to this animal as a beaver rat. Beavers have flat tails and webbed feet while platypuses have flat tails and duck-like bills. The teeth of Castorocauda suggest that the animal was a piscivore, feeding on fish and small invertebrates. The platypus ( Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is one of the most unusual creatures in the animal kingdom. Australia supports a diverse array of native rodents that have been a part of. Most docodonts had teeth specialized for an omnivorous diet. The teeth of Castorocauda are different in many ways from all other docodonts, presumably due to a difference in diet. Docodonts in general have distinctive teeth, and the teeth of Castorocauda have the distinguishing features of the group. ![]()
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