| Murrayglossus Temporal range: Pleistocene | |
|---|---|
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| An artist's illustration of Murrayglossus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Monotremata |
| Family: | Tachyglossidae |
| Genus: | Murrayglossus |
| Species: | †M. hacketti |
| Binomial name | |
| †Murrayglossus hacketti Glauert, 1914 | |
Murrayglossus hacketti is an extinct species of giant echidna from Western Australia that is dated to the Pleistocene. It is known only from a few bones. It was about 1 m long and probably weighed about 30 kg (66 lb), making it the largest monotreme known to have ever lived. Historically, Murrayglossus has been treated as a species of long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus); however a 2022 study moved it to a distinct genus[1].
Discoveries[]
Fossils of Murrayglossus have been discovered in Mammoth Cave, Western Australia. The material is poor, mostly vertebra and leg bones, and the cranial material is completely absent. Some of these specimens have been found with burn marks on them indicating the species was hunted and eaten by humans, though it is unknown if the animal was a primary food source.
Other evidence for Murrayglossus coexisting with humans comes from rock art found in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory made by aboriginal Australians, these drawings may represent Murrayglossus, although they may actually represent the extant western long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus bruijnii).
Description[]
Murrayglossus is the largest monotreme known to science, reaching a length of 1 meter, and a maximum weight of 30 kilograms. Unlike modern echidnas, Murrayglossus had relatively longer and straighter legs. In 2006, Augee speculated that this trait made the animal more suited for life in dense forests[2].