Abstract
UNTIL now, the egg-laying monotremes were only known from the Australian continent, where they have lived since the early Cretaceous period to the present1. Here we report the first monotreme from outside the Australian continent, an ornithorhyn-chid, from sediments of late early Palaeocene age in Patagonia, southern Argentina. This discovery demonstrates the Gondwanan nature of monotremes and supports the hypothesis that the Patagonian Terrane of southern South America had a biotic history distinct from that of the rest of the continent.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Archer, M., Flannery, T. F., Ritchie, A. & Molnar, R. E. Nature 318, 363–366 (1985).
Archer, M., Murray, P., Hand, S. J. & Godthelp, H. in Mammal Phytogeny (eds Szalay, F., Novacek, M. & McKenna, M.) (Springer, New York, in the press).
Archer, M., Jenkins, F. A. Jr., Hand, S. J., Godthelp, H. & Murray, P. Aust. Zool. Rev. (in the press).
Every, R. G. A New Terminology for Mammalian Teeth Founded on the Phenomenon of Thegosis (Pegasus, Christchurch, 1972).
Lester, K. S. & Archer, M. Anat. Embryol. 174, 145–151 (1986).
Borde, A. thesis, Univ. London (1964).
Legarreta, L. A., Uliana, M. A. & Torres, M. A. in Actas II Simp. sobre el Terciario de Chile:Procesos y Productos de Depositación en el Ámbito Andino 135–176 Univ. de Concepción, Chile, 1991).
Méndez, I. A. Rev. Asoc. Geol. Arg. 21, 127–160 (1966).
Maziuk, V. Rev. Mus. La Plata, nueva serie, sectión Palaeont 5, 197–258 (1967).
Pascual, R. & Ortiz-Jaureguizar, E. In Facies y Fósiles de Bolivia Vol. 2 (ed. Suárez-Soruco, R.) 3–4 (Rev. Tecn. Yac. Petrol. Bolivia, 1991).
Marshall, L. G. & de Muizon, C. Nat. Geog. Res. 4, 23–55 (1988).
Pascual, R. & Ortiz-Jaureguizar, E. J. hum. Evol. 19, 22–60 (1990).
Kraus, D. E. & Bonaparte, J. F. J. vert. Paleont. 10, 31A (1990).
Petriella, B. T. P. & Archangelsky, S. in Actas I Congr. Arg. Paleont. Bioestrat. 2, 257–270 (Tucumán, Argentina, 1975).
Zinsmeister, W. J. in Historical Biogeography, Plate Tectonic and the Changing Environments (eds J. Gray & A. J. Boucot) 349–355 (Proc. 37th Ann. Biol. Colloq., Oregon University Press, 1979).
Zinsmeister, W. J. J. Paleont. 36, 84–102 (1982).
Vilas, J. F. & Valencio, D. in Acta V. Congreso Latinoam. Geol. 3, 743–758 (1982).
Case, J. A. Geol. Soc. Am. 169, 523–530 (1988).
Pascual, R. & Bondesio, P. in Actas VI Congr. Geol. Arg. 1, 565–577 (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1975).
Ramos, V. A. Am. Scient. 77, 444–450 (1989).
Crisci, J. V., Cigliano, M. M., Morrone, J. J. & Roig-Junent, S. Syst. Zool. 40, 152–171 (1991).
Bonaparte, J. F. in Symp. Evol. Vert. Mesoz. Actas 2 (ed. Bonaparte, J. F.) 63–95 (IV Congr. Arg. Paleont. & Bioestrat., Mendoza. Argentina, 1986).
Bonaparte, J. F. (ed.) Rev. Mus. Arg. Cs. Nat., Paleontología III(3), 103–178 (1987).
Scillato-Yané, G. J. & Pascual, R. Ameghiniana 21, 173–76 (1985).
Pascual, R. & Ortiz-Jaureguizar, E. in Fossil Mammals and Evolution (eds Forsten, A., Fortelius, M. & Werdelin, L.) (Acta Zool. Fen. 191, in the press).
Stehli, F. G. & Webb, S. D. (eds) The Great American Biotic Interchange, XVII and 532 (Plenum, 1985).
Marshall, L. G., Hoffstetter, R. & Pascual, R. Paleovertebrata Montpellier, Mém. Extr. 1983, 1–93 (1983).
Woodburne, M. O. & Tedford, R. H. Am. Mus. Novit. 2588, 1–11 (1975).
Westerman, M. & Edwards, D. Abstr. Symp. Monotreme Biol. (ed. Augee, M.) 27 (Roy. Zool. Soc. New South Wales, Sydney, 1991).
Kielan-Jaworowska, Z., Crompton, A. W. & Jenkins, F. A. Jr Nature 326, 871–873 (1987).
Veevers, J. J. (ed.) Phanerozoic Earth History of Australia (Clarendon, Oxford, 1984).
Szalay, F. in Carnivorous Marsupials (ed. Archer, M.) 621–640 (Roy. Zool. Soc. New South Wales, Sydney, 1982).
Aplin, K. & Archer, M. in Possums and Opossums: Studies in Evolution (ed. Archer, M.) XV–LXXII (Surrey Beatty and the Roy. Zool. Soc. NSW, Sydney, 1987).
Pascual, R. et al. Aust. Zool. Rev. (in the press).
Griffiths, M., Wells, R. T. & Barrie, D. J. Aust. Mammal. 14, 87–101 (1991).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pascual, R., Archer, M., Jaureguizar, E. et al. First discovery of monotremes in South America. Nature 356, 704–706 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1038/356704a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/356704a0
This article is cited by
-
First monotreme from the Late Cretaceous of South America
Communications Biology (2023)
-
New Metatherian Mammal from the Early Eocene of Antarctica
Journal of Mammalian Evolution (2020)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.