Parastrapotherium

Parastrapotherium is an extinct genus of South American land mammal that existed from the Late Oligocene (Deseadan SALMA) to the Early Miocene (Colhuehuapian SALMA). The genus includes some of the largest and smallest known astrapotherian, but at present no generally recognized description can adequately characterize it.

Description
The genus was first described by. He distinguished it from the Santacrucian (late Early Miocene) Astrapotherium based on the greater number of upper and lower molars. Although later researchers disagreed and concluded that Ameghino based his conclusion on very fragmentary materials, they mostly agreed to distinguish the genus from other groups of astrapotherians.

Species
The following species have been recognised:
 * Parastrapotherium cingulatum
 * Parastrapotherium ephebicum
 * Parastrapotherium holmbergi
 * Parastrapotherium lemoinei
 * Parastrapotherium trouessarti

Distribution
Fossils of Parastrapotherium have been found in:


 * Oligocene
 * Deseado Formation, Argentina
 * Sarmiento Formation, Argentina


 * Miocene
 * Cerro Bandera Formation, Argentina
 * Sarmiento Formation, Argentina