Palaeomeryx

*Palaeomeryx* is a genus of early ruminants, arguably either a giraffoid or deer. Their species existed in the Miocene in Eurasia. I'm having a hard time finding all the species of *Palaeomeryxes*. One is *P. tricornis*, but it seems that this might not be the most popular species, especially as its sometimes moved to *Sinomeryx*. It's also hard finding fossils and depictions thereof, cause despite having cool horns like many ancient ruminants, it just isn't that popular. There seems to also be *P. Cricetodon* and *P. kaudi*.

Due to their ear-bones being its own unique thing but somewhat resembling deer more than the giraffes, there is confusion over where to place this animal and some authors consider it a giraffoid while others a deer. Additionally I am not totally sure which species the original article is describing, and have opted to put it here in the hopes that it covers all species, however P. tricornis, has been labelled as a deer in some studies. Additionally there seems to be confusion over to how its horns were shaped, with one description being:

> The occipital appendage of the Chinese ‘*Palaeomeryx’ tricornis* was originally described as a ‘bony horn much dilated at its end’, and reconstructed as a non-forked structure. However more recent discoveries have demonstrated that the occipital appendage of ‘*P*.’ *tricornis* was in fact long and bifurcated.
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While another:

> P4. Clade B contains ‘*Sinomeryx’ tricornis* + *Ampelomeryx ginsburgi*, and is characterized by flattish, non-pneumatized ossicones with an anteriorly positioned extension ‘wing’, presence of frontal eyebrow-like projections at the ossicone base, nuchal crest extended into the shaft of the occipital appendage, and a simple distal end of the post-metacristid.
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While I'm sure that P. tricornis can be found in central-northern Asia and is limited there, I am not sure what other species live where, though it's certainly in the Iberian Peninsula and other areas of Asia and Europe. Additionally I am not totally sure what they even look like outside of a fossil on Wikipedia not marked with a species and a couple artist depictions of a four or three-horned saber-toothed okapi-deer.

This is the namesake of the Palaeomeryx fold, a kind of flattened molar that was common in prehistoric ruminants.

## References

1. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Palaeomeryx&oldid=1125475126
2. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=vRpHAAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&ots=tSCRNREYxW&sig=5bltnd6Pqwg8xzqkSbnN4nz-YGM#v=onepage&q=palaeomeryx&f=false
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283044484\_Palaeomeryx\_Mammalia\_Artiodactyla\_and\_the\_giraffes\_data\_from\_the\_ear\_region
4. ↑ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/293512775\_The\_fossil\_records\_of\_deer\_in\_China
5. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668073/
6. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668073/#pone.0143034.ref016
7. ↑ https://www.deviantart.com/eurwentala/art/Ancient-Ruminants-584376985
8. ↑ https://www.deviantart.com/artbyjrc/art/Bizarre-headgear-2-Palaeomerycids-834607663
9. ↑ https://www.pinterest.com/pin/AYM9YuTiwkk9uhXyK\_EDfP83KPwIzCbhNIb\_I\_QgQregdqC51NGiG1M/