0.4" Palaeolagus Hayeni Fossil Jaw Section Teeth Oligocene Epoch South Dakota Display

Location: Brule Formation, Pennington County, South Dakota

Weight: 0.2 Ounces

Dimensions: 0.4 Inches Long, 0.4 Inches Wide, 0.4 Inches Thick

Comes with a free display.

The item pictured is the one you will receive. 

Oligocene epoch, 33.9 to 23 million years ago

Palaeolagus Hayeni is an extinct lagomorph species, specifically an ancient rabbit, that lived in North America during the Oligocene epoch. This species belongs to the genus Palaeolagus, which is considered one of the earliest and most primitive lagomorph groups, showing traits that connect ancestral mammals to modern rabbits and hares.

This Palaeolagus hayeni jaw section represents a significant paleontological specimen from the Oligocene epoch of South Dakota. The dental morphology exhibits characteristic lagomorph traits, including ever-growing incisors and molars specialized for processing tough vegetation. Unlike modern rabbits, skeletal evidence suggests this early relative employed a more generalized running or scurrying locomotion rather than specialized hopping. Examination of such cranial and dental material proves invaluable for understanding lagomorph evolution and the adaptive radiation that ultimately produced contemporary rabbit and hare lineages. A compelling window into Paleogene mammalian diversification.