# Entelodon

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{{Short description|Extinct genus of mammals}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{Fossilrange|37.2|28.4}}[Houldjinian](/source/Houldjinian)–[Rupelian](/source/Rupelian)
| image = Entelodon magnus 2 canines MHNT.PAL.2013.0.1016.1-2.jpg
| image_caption = Two mandibular canines of ''E. magnus'' at the [MHNT](/source/MHNT)
| taxon = Entelodon
| type_species_authority = [Aymard](/source/Auguste_Aymard), 1846
| authority = [Aymard](/source/Auguste_Aymard), 1846
| type_species = †'''''Entelodon magnus'''''
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = * †''E. magnus'' <small>(type species)Aymard, 1846</small>
* †''E. ronzonii'' <small>Aymard, 1846</small>
* †''E. aymardi'' <small>(Pomel, 1853)</small>
* †''E. verdeaui'' <small>(Delfortrie, 1874)</small>
* †''E. deguilhemi'' <small>Repelin, 1918</small>
* †''E. antiquus'' <small>Repelin, 1919</small>
* †''E. dirus'' <small>Matthew and Granger, 1923</small>
* †''E. gobiensis'' <small>(Trofimov, 1952)</small>
* †''E. major'' <small>(Biriukov, 1961)</small>
| synonyms = * ''Elotherium'' <small>Pommel, 1847</small>
}}
'''''Entelodon''''' (meaning 'complete teeth', from [Ancient Greek](/source/Ancient_Greek) {{lang|grc|ἐντελής}} ''entelēs'' 'complete' and {{lang|grc|ὀδών}} ''odōn'' 'tooth', referring to its "complete" [eutheria](/source/eutheria)n dentition<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Foss|first=Scott E.|title=The Evolution of Artiodactyls|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year=2007|isbn=978-0-8018-8735-2|editor-last=Prothero|editor-first=Donald R.|location=Baltimore|pages=120–129|chapter=Family Entelodontidae|editor-last2=Foss|editor-first2=Scott E.}}</ref>), formerly called '''''Elotherium''''', is an [extinct](/source/Extinction) [genus](/source/genus) of [entelodont](/source/Entelodontidae) [artiodactyl](/source/Even-toed_ungulate) found in [Eurasia](/source/Eurasia). [Fossil](/source/Fossil)s of [species](/source/species) of ''Entelodon'' are found in [Paleogene](/source/Paleogene) [strata](/source/Stratum) ranging in age from the [Houldjinian](/source/Houldjinian) (37.2–33.9 [mya](/source/Annum)) until the [Rupelian](/source/Rupelian) epoch of the early [Oligocene](/source/Oligocene) (33.9–28.4 mya).<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=42369 PaleoBiology Database: ''Entelodon'', basic info]</ref>

==Taxonomy==
It is one of four entelodont genera native to Eurasia, the other three being the primitive ''[Eoentelodon](/source/Eoentelodon)'' of late [Eocene](/source/Eocene) [China](/source/China), ''[Proentelodon](/source/Proentelodon)'' of middle Eocene [Mongolia](/source/Mongolia) and the gigantic ''[Paraentelodon](/source/Paraentelodon)'' of mid-to-late Oligocene Central Asia.

==Description==
thumb|left|Size comparison between ''E. deguilhemi'' and a human 
''Entelodon'' was a fairly typical [entelodont](/source/entelodont), with a large, bulky body, slender legs, and a long snout.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|last=Foss|first=Scott E.|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/304715809|title=Systematics and Paleobiology of the Entelodontidae (Mammalia, Artiodactyla)|publisher=Ph.D Dissertation. Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University|year=2001|location=DeKalb, Illinois|id={{ProQuest|304715809}}}}</ref><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Scott|first=W. B.|date=1898|title=The Osteology of ''Elotherium''|journal=Transactions of the American Philosophical Society|volume=19|issue=3|pages=273–324|doi=10.2307/1005496|issn=0065-9746|jstor=1005496}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Marsh|first=O. C.|date=1894-05-01|title=Restoration of ''Elotherium''|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/124374#page/439/mode/1up|journal=American Journal of Science|volume=s3-47|issue=281|pages=407–408|doi=10.2475/ajs.s3-47.281.407|bibcode=1894AmJS...47..407M|s2cid=130683520|issn=0002-9599}}</ref>

Like other entelodonts, ''Entelodon'' had complete eutherian dentition (3 [incisor](/source/incisor)s, 1 [canine](/source/Canine_tooth), 3 [premolar](/source/premolar)s, and 3 [molars](/source/Molar_(tooth)) per quadrant). It had only two toes on each foot, and its legs were built for fast running.<ref name="Agusti">Agustí, J and Antón, M (2002). ''Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids: 65 Million Years of Mammalian Evolution in Europe''. Retrieved from [https://books.google.com/books?id=Pqd4vTcoWMsC&dq=entelodon&pg=PA75 Google Books]</ref> Its long, wide head was supported by a robust, short neck,<ref name="Agusti" /> and its [cheekbones](/source/Zygomatic_arch) were greatly enlarged and protruded noticeably from the sides of the head.<ref name="Joeckel">{{Cite journal|jstor = 2400970|title = A Functional Interpretation of the Masticatory System and Paleoecology of Entelodonts|last1 = Joeckel|first1 = R. M.|journal = Paleobiology|year = 1990|volume = 16|issue = 4|pages = 459–482|doi = 10.1017/S0094837300010198| bibcode=1990Pbio...16..459J }}</ref> Though it was more closely related to [hippos](/source/Hippopotamidae) and [whales](/source/Cetacea) than [pig](/source/pig)s, its skull was generally pig-like.<ref name="Agusti" /><ref name="Joeckel" /> It is presumed to have been an [omnivore](/source/omnivore).

European species of ''Entelodon'' were around {{convert|1.35|m}} tall at the shoulders, with a {{convert|65|cm}} skull.<ref name="Agusti" /> ''Entelodon major'', known from the Kutanbulak Formation in [Kazakhstan](/source/Kazakhstan) was around {{convert|1.70|m}} tall at the shoulders, with an {{convert|80|cm}} skull, making it one of the largest entelodonts. ''E. gobiensis'' was one of the largest entelodonts, estimated to have weighed {{convert|630|kg|lb}}.<ref>Tsubamoto Takehisa, Tsogtbaatar Khishigjav; Saneyoshi Mototaka et al. (2013). ''[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264534084 New specimens of Entelodon gobiensis (Mammalia; Artiodactyla; Entelodontidae) from the Eocene Ergilin Dzo Formation, Mongolia]''. The Bulletin of Research Institute of Natural Sciences, Okayama University of Science. 39. 37-41.</ref>

==Paleoecology==
[[File:Entelodon.jpg|left|thumb|[Life restoration](/source/Life_restoration) by [Charles R. Knight](/source/Charles_R._Knight), 1896]]
Based on its [dental microwear](/source/dental_microwear), ''E. magnus'' had an omnivorous diet comparable to that of the modern [wild boar](/source/wild_boar).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rivals |first=Florent |last2=Belyaev |first2=Ruslan I. |last3=Basova |first3=Vera B. |last4=Prilepskaya |first4=Natalya E. |date=1 February 2023 |title=Hogs, hippos or bears? Paleodiet of European Oligocene anthracotheres and entelodonts |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S003101822200534X |journal=[Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology](/source/Palaeogeography%2C_Palaeoclimatology%2C_Palaeoecology) |language=en |volume=611 |article-number=111363 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2022.111363 |access-date=14 April 2025 |via=Elsevier Science Direct|doi-access=free }}</ref>

''Entelodon'' remains are primarily known from Europe,<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Aymard|first=A.|date=1846|title=Essai monographique sur un nouveau genre de mammifere' fossile trouve dans la Haute-Loire, et nomme ''Entelodon''|journal=Annales de la Société d'Agriculture, Sciences, Arts et Commerce du Puy|volume=12|pages=227–267}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pomel|first=A.|date=1847|title=Note sur un nouveau genre de pachydermes du bassin de la Gironde (''Elotherium magnum'')|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/240488#page/1115/mode/1up|journal=Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France|volume=2|issue=4|pages=1083–1085}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pomel|first=A.|date=1847|title=Sur un nouveau genre de Pachydermes fossiles (''Elotherium'') voisin des Hippopotames|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89048211742&view=1up&seq=781&skin=2021|journal=Archives des Sciences Physiques et Naturelles|volume=5|pages=307–308}}</ref> although fossils have also been found in Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China, and even as far east as Japan.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lucas |first1=Spencer G. |last2=Emry |first2=Robert J. |date=January 1996 |title=Late Eocene entelodonts (Mammalia: Artiodactyla) from Inner Mongolia, China |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283797868 |journal=Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington |volume=109 |issue=2 |pages=397–405 |via=ResearchGate}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tsubamoto |first1=Takehisa |last2=Koda |first2=Yoshiki |last3=Hasegawa |first3=Yoshikazu |last4=Nabana |first4=Satoshi |last5=Tomida |first5=Yukimitsu |date=August 2015 |title=Paleogene mammals from the Iwaki Formation in Japan: Their implications for the geologic age and paleobiogeography of this formation |journal=Journal of Asian Earth Sciences |volume=108 |pages=18–32 |doi=10.1016/j.jseaes.2015.03.049 |bibcode=2015JAESc.108...18T |issn=1367-9120}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ducrocq |first1=Stéphane |last2=Chaimanee |first2=Yaowalak |last3=Jaeger |first3=Jean-Jacques |date=March 2019 |title=First record of Entelodontidae (Mammalia, Artiodactyla) from the late Eocene of Southeast Asia |journal=Comptes Rendus Palevol |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=186–190 |doi=10.1016/j.crpv.2018.10.001 |bibcode=2019CRPal..18..186D |issn=1631-0683}}</ref>

''Entelodon magnus'' populated a broad swath of Europe, with remains found in Spain, Germany, France, Romania, and the Caucasus. Extensive remains of ''Entelodon deguilhemi'' were uncovered in [Vayres-sur-Essonne](/source/Vayres-sur-Essonne), [France](/source/France).<ref name="Agusti" /><ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=95924 Paleobiology Database:Entelodon deguilhemi]</ref> The Chinese ''Entelodon dirus'' is known from a single tooth discovered in [Nei Mongol](/source/Inner_Mongolia).<ref>[https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=101337 Paleobiology Database:Entelodon dirus]</ref>

== See also ==
* {{portal-inline|Paleontology}}

==References==
{{Wikispecies|Entelodon}}
{{Commons category|Entelodon}}
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q133847}}

Category:Oligocene Artiodactyla
Category:Entelodonts
Category:Rupelian genus extinctions
Category:Oligocene mammals of Asia
Category:Oligocene mammals of Europe
Category:Fossil taxa described in 1846
Category:Prehistoric Artiodactyla genera

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Entelodon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entelodon) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entelodon?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.