Procoptodon gilli (Merrilees, 1965)

Taxonomy & Nomenclature

Synonym/s: Sthenurus gilli Merrilees, 1965 (basionym); Simosthenurus gilli (Merrilees, 1965)

Conservation Status

Extinct

Last record: Late Pleistocene

Distribution

Australia

Anatomy & Morphology

It weighed an estimated 30kg (Johnson & Prideaux, 2004:557), 54kg (Johnson, 2006:19) or a mean 54 ± 15.6kg (n=4, range 43–77) (Helgen et al., 2006).

Biology & Ecology

It was a browser (Johnson, 2006:19).

Hypodigm

SAM P17503 (Helgen et al., 2006:303)

SAM P17268 (Helgen et al., 2006:303)

SAM S123 0703 (Helgen et al., 2006:303)

FUCN1403 (Helgen et al., 2006:303)

Media

References

Original scientific description:

Merrilees, D. (1965). Two species of the extinct genus Sthenurus Owen (Marsupialia: Macropodidae) from south-eastern Australia, including Sthenurus gilli sp. nov. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 48: 22-32. [Abstract]

Other references:

Brown, Steven P. and Wells, Roderick T. (2000). A middle Pleistocene vertebrate fossil assemblage from Cathedral Cave, Naracoorte, South Australia. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 124(2): 91-104.

Flannery, Timothy F. and Gott, B. (1984). The Spring Creek locality, southwestern Victoria, a late surviving megafaunal assemblage. Australian Zoologist 21: 385-422.

Fraser, Rebecca A. and Wells, Roderick T. (2006). The palaeontological excavation and taphonomic investigation of a late Pleistocene fossil deposit in Grant Hall, Naracoorte, South Australia. Alcheringa Special Issue 1, 2006: 147-161.

Helgen, Kristofer M., Wells, Rod T., Kear, Benjamin P., Gerdtz, Wayne R. and Flannery, Timothy F. (2006). Ecological and evolutionary significance of sizes of giant extinct kangaroos. Australian Journal of Zoology 54(4): 293-303. [body weight estimate]

Hope, J. H., Lampert, R. J., Edmondson, E., Smith, M. J. and van Tets, G F. (1977). Late Pleistocene Faunal Remains from Seton Rock Shelter, Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Journal of Biogeography 4(4): 363-385. [Abstract] ["Sthenurus cf. gilli"]

Hughes, P. and Lampert, R. J. (1977). Occupational disturbance and types of archaeological deposit. J. Arch. Sci. 4(2): 135-140.

Johnson, Chris N. (2006). Australia's Mammal Extinctions: A 50 000 Year History. Port Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. x + 278 pp. [p. 19]

Johnson, Chris N. and Prideaux, Gavin J. (2004). Extinctions of herbivorous mammals in the late Pleistocene of Australia in relation to their feeding ecology: no evidence for environmental change as cause of extinction. Australian Ecology 29: 553-557. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1442-9993.2004.01389.x

Mahoney, J. A. and Ride, W. D. L. (1975). Index to the genera and species of fossil Mammalia described from Australia and New Guinea between 1838 and 1968. Western Australian Museum Special Publication 6: 1-250.

McDowell, M. C. et al. (2015). Re-evaluating the Late Quaternary fossil mammal assemblage of Seton Rockshelter, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, including the evidence for late-surviving megafauna. Journal of Quaternary Science 30: 355–364. [Abstract]

McDowell, M. C. et al. (2022). Interpreting the mammal deposits of Cloggs Cave (SE Australia), GunaiKurnai Aboriginal Country, through community-led partnership research. People and Nature. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10410

Murray, P. F. (1991). The Pleistocene megafauna of Australia, pp. 1071-1164. In: Vickers-Rich, P., Monaghan, J. M., Baird, R. F., and Rich, T. H. Vertebrate Palaeontology of Australiasia. Lilydale, Victoria: Pioneer Design Studio.

Pledge, Neville S. (1990). The Upper Fossil Fauna of the Henschke Fossil Cave, Naracoorte, South Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum (Proceedings of the De Vis Symposium) 28(1): 247-262.

Prideaux, Gavin J. (2004). Systematics and evolution of the sthenurine kangaroos. University of California Publications in Geological Sciences 146:i±xviii, 1±623.

Prideaux, G. J., R. G. Roberts, D. Megirian, K. E. Westaway, J. C. Hellstrom, and J. M. Olley. (2007). Mammalian responses to Pleistocene climate change in southeastern Australia. Geology 35: 33-36.

Reed, E. H. (2006). In Situ Taphonomic Investigation of Pleistocene Large Mammal Bone Deposits from The Ossuaries, Victoria Fossil Cave, Naracoorte, South Australia. Helictite 39(1): 5-15. [subfossil record]

Reed, Elizabeth H. and Bourne, Steven J. (2000). Pleistocene fossil vertebrate sites of the south east region of South Australia. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 124(2): 61-90.

Reed, Elizabeth H. and Bourne, Steven J. (2009). Pleistocene Fossil Vertebrate Sites of the South East Region of South Australia II. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 133(1): 30-40.

Roberts, Richard G, Flannery, Timothy F., Ayliffe, Linda, Yoshida, Hiroyuki, Olley, Jon M., Prideaux, Gavin J., Laslett, Geoff M., Baynes, Alexander, Smith, M. A., Jones, Rhys I. and Smith, Barton L. (2001). New ages for the last Australian megafauna: Continent-wide extinction about 46,000 years ago. Science 292(5523): 1888-1892. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1060264

Theden-Ringl, Fenja et al. (2020). Characterizing Environmental Change and Species’ Histories from Stratified Faunal Records in Southeastern Australia: A Regional Review and a Case Study for the Early to Middle Holocene. Records of the Australian Museum 72(5): 207-223.

Travouillon, Kenny J., Jackson, Stephen, Beck, Robin M. D., Louys, Julien, Cramb, Jonathan, Gillespie, Anna, Black, Karen, Hand, Suzanne, Archer, Michael, Kear, Benjamin, Hocknull, Scott, Phillips, Matthew, McDowell, Matthew, Fitzgerald, Erich M. G., Brewer, Phillipa and Price, Gilbert J. (2024). Checklist of the Fossil Mammal Species of Australia and New Guinea.  Available from: https://www.australasianpalaeontologists.com/national-fossil-species-lists [Accessed 24 November 2024]

Wakefield, Norman A. (1967). Preliminary report on McEachern's Cave, S.W. Victoria. The Victorian Naturalist 84(12): 363-383.

Wells, Rod T., Moriarty, K. and Williams, D. L. G. (1984). The fossil vertebrate deposits of Victoria Fossil Cave Naracoorte: an introduction to the geology and fauna. The Australian Zoologist 21(4): 305-333.

White, J. Peter and Flannery, Tim. (1995). Late Pleistocene fauna at Spring Creek, Victoria: A re-evaluation. Australian Archaeology 40: 13-17. [link to pdf copy at bottom of the page]

ftp://rock.geosociety.org/pub/reposit/2007/2007016.pdf

https://extinctanimals.proboards.com/thread/22911/sthenurus-gilli

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