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March 16, 2006

Did You Know? Rodents of Unusual Size Really Did Exist

Did you know?

Rodents of Unusual Size Really Did Exist

8 Million Years Ago

Back about 8 million years ago during the Miocene Epoch, a rodent of unusual size (ROUS from the movie The Princess Bride, a perlgurl personal favorite) roamed the swampy forests of the Orinoco River delta, foraging and grazing on grasses. One of the largest waterways in South America, the Orinoco winds from Venezuela through the Brazilian plains, finally emptying into Atlantic Ocean.

When I say unusual size, I'm talking 3 meters long plus tail (another 2m), weighing roughly 1500 pounds. The Phoberomys pattersoni looked like a really large capybara, and may actually be its distant evolutionary ancestor.

Don't believe it? Back in 2000, a near-complete skeletal fossil of Phoberomys was found in Venezuela.

Posted by sorsha at March 16, 2006 1:53 AM