Gurbanodelta

Gurbanodelta Temporal range: Late Paleocene ~56 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	†Deltatheroida
Family:	†Deltatheridiidae
Genus:	†Gurbanodelta Xinjun Ni et al, 2016
Species
G. kara

Gurbanodelta kara is an extinct genus of metatherian mammal. A deltatheroid, it represents the geologically youngest member of this clade, dating to the late Paleocene of China.^[1]

Description

Gurbanodelta kata is known from upper molars. They are the smallest sized among deltatheroideans, suggesting that it was a small, shrew-sized mammal.^[1]

Classification

Gurbanodelta kara nests deeply within Deltatheridiidae. Its closest relative is the largest known deltatheroidean, Nanocuris.^[1]

Size reduction

Deltatheroideans are relatively large carnivorous mammals. By contrast, Gurbanodelta kara is a small sized species. This indicates a size reduction that potentially allowed it to survive the KT event, likely switching to an insectivorous diet.^[1]

References

1. Ni, Xijun; Li, Qiang; Stidham, Thomas A.; Li, Lüzhou; Lu, Xiaoyu; Meng, Jin (2016). "A late Paleocene probable metatherian (?deltatheroidan) survivor of the Cretaceous mass extinction". Scientific Reports. 6. Springer Science and Business Media LLC: 38547. Bibcode:2016NatSR...638547N. doi:10.1038/srep38547. PMC 5141426. PMID 27924847.