Nimbadon

{{Short description|Extinct genus of marsupials}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2019}} {{Automatic taxobox | fossil_range = {{fossilrange|25|12}} | image = Composite Nimbadon lavarackorum skeleton from AL90, Riversleigh - journal.pone.0048213.g001.png | image_caption = Composite ''N. lavarackorum'' skeleton from the [[Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh)|Riversleigh]] site | image2 = Reconstruction of Nimbadon lavarackorum mother and juvenile - journal.pone.0048213.g002.png | image2_caption = ''N. lavarackorum'' mother and juvenile (reconstruction) by [[Peter Schouten]] | taxon = Nimbadon | authority = [[Suzanne Hand|Hand]], [[Mike Archer (paleontologist)|Archer]], Godthelp, [[Patricia Vickers-Rich|Rich]] & Pledge, 1993.<ref name="Hand1993">{{cite journal |last1=Hand |first1=S.J. |last2=Archer |first2=M. |last3=Godthelp |first3=H. |last4=Rich |first4=T.H. |last5=Pledge |first5=N.S. |title=Nimbadon, a new genus and three new species of Tertiary zygomaturines (Marsupialia: Diprotodontidae) from northern Australia, with a reassessment of Neohelos |journal=Memoirs of the Queensland Museum |date=1993 |volume=33 |pages=193–210 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/71096}}</ref> | subdivision_ranks = [[Species]] | subdivision = †''Nimbadon lavarackorum''<br /> †''Nimbadon scottorrorum''<br /> †''Nimbadon whitelawi'' }}

'''''Nimbadon''''' is an [[extinction|extinct]] [[genus]] of marsupial, that lived from the [[Oligocene]] to the [[Miocene]].<ref name="Hand1993" /> Many [[Fossil|fossils]] have been found in the [[Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh)|Riversleigh World Heritage property]] in north-western [[Queensland]]. It is thought to have an [[Arboreal locomotion|arboreal]] lifestyle.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Black |first1=Karen H. |last2=Camens |first2=Aaron B. |last3=Archer |first3=Michael |last4=Hand |first4=Suzanne J. |date=2012-11-21 |editor-last=Evans |editor-first=Alistair Robert |title=Herds Overhead: Nimbadon lavarackorum (Diprotodontidae), Heavyweight Marsupial Herbivores in the Miocene Forests of Australia |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=7 |issue=11 |article-number=e48213 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0048213 |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3504027 |pmid=23185250 |bibcode=2012PLoSO...748213B |doi-access=free }}</ref>

In 1990, skulls were unearthed in a previously unknown cave in the region. Researchers estimate that the first species of ''Nimbadon'' first appeared around 25 million years ago<ref name="Hand1993" /> and went extinct around 12 million years ago, perhaps from climate change-induced habitat loss.

== Description == ''Nimbadon lavarackorum'' is described as being [[koala|koala-like]]. It is known from at least 24 well-articulated specimens. The species was a tree-dweller, mainly feeding on stems and leaves. The feet and claws were large, being superficially similar to those of the koala.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2012/11/22/3637755.htm Ancient tree-wombat behaved like a koala] - By Anna Salleh - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - Retrieved 22 November 2012.</ref>

== Phylogeny == While originally classified as a member of the family [[Diprotodontidae]], a primarily terrestrial group,<ref name="Hand1993" /><ref name=":0" /> some later studies suggested a more basal position within the [[Diprotodontoidea]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Beck |first1=Robin M. D. |last2=Louys |first2=Julien |last3=Brewer |first3=Philippa |last4=Archer |first4=Michael |last5=Black |first5=Karen H. |last6=Tedford |first6=Richard H. |date=2020-06-25 |title=A new family of diprotodontian marsupials from the latest Oligocene of Australia and the evolution of wombats, koalas, and their relatives (Vombatiformes) |journal=Scientific Reports |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |page=9741 |doi=10.1038/s41598-020-66425-8 |issn=2045-2322 |pmc=7316786 |pmid=32587406|bibcode=2020NatSR..10.9741B }}</ref>

== Palaeoecology == ''N. lavarackorum'' was an arboreal [[frugivore]] that primarily fed on [[C3 photosynthesis|C<sub>3</sub>]] fruits.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=DeSantis |first=Larisa R. G. |last2=Archer |first2=Michael |last3=Black |first3=Karen |last4=Hand |first4=Suzanne |last5=Korasidis |first5=Vera |date=2 October 2023 |title=Tree-climbing in search of fruit: an ancient arboreal marsupial megafrugivore from the Miocene of Australia |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03115518.2023.2268680 |journal=[[Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology]] |language=en |volume=47 |issue=4 |pages=534–542 |doi=10.1080/03115518.2023.2268680 |issn=0311-5518 |access-date=8 November 2024 |via=Taylor and Francis Online|url-access=subscription |hdl=1959.4/unsworks_84887 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20090217125832/http://lostkingdoms.com/facts/factsheet24.htm Australias lost kingdoms, Nimbodon.] *[http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/6041 Black K. H. and Hand. S 2010., Nimbadon crania and species boundaries, American Museum novitates, no. 3678] *[http://pdfserve.informaworld.com/339420__924299680.pdf KAREN H. BLACK,* MICHAEL ARCHER, SUZANNE J. HAND, and HENK GODTHELP FIRST COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF CRANIAL ONTOGENY IN A FOSSIL MARSUPIAL—FROM A 15-MILLION-YEAR-OLD CAVE DEPOSIT IN NORTHERN AUSTRALIA] *[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10686515 "Cave yields marsupial fossil haul"]. BBC News. 2010-07-19. *[http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-03/giant-tree-wombat-wins-science-prize/3987314 "Giant tree wombat discovery wins science prize"] ABC News 2012-05-03

[[Category:Prehistoric mammals of Australia]] [[Category:Prehistoric vombatiforms]] [[Category:Oligocene marsupials]] [[Category:Miocene marsupials]] [[Category:Riversleigh fauna]] [[Category:Fossil taxa described in 1993]] [[Category:Prehistoric marsupial genera]]