Scientists discover large extinct otter
23-JAN-2017
Scientists discover large extinct otter
6.24-million-year-old otter species among the largest ever known
CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Dr. Xiaoming Wang, Curator and Head of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and Dr. Denise Su, Curator & Head of Paleobotany and Paleoecology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History have published a paper with colleagues in the Journal of Systematic Paleontology on the discovery of one of the largest otter species ever found. This discovery was made in the Yunnan Province, Southwestern China by an international team of scientists from the United States, France, and China. It represents groundbreaking research into the evolution of a little-known fossil genus of the otter family.
This newly discovered species of otter, Siamogale melilutra, belongs to an ancient lineage of extinct otters that was previously known only from isolated teeth recovered from Thailand. The discovery of a complete cranium, mandible, dentition and various skeletal elements at Shuitangba provides information about the taxonomy, evolutionary history, and functional morphology of this new species.
"While the cranium is incredibly complete, it was flattened during the fossilization process. The bones were so delicate that we could not physically restore the cranium. Instead, we CT-scanned the specimen and virtually reconstructed it in a computer," said Dr. Su. The CT restoration revealed a combination of otter-like and badger-like cranial and dental feature, hence its species name, "melilutra," which refers to meles, Latin for badger, and lutra, Latin for otter.
Siamogale melilutra was about the size of a wolf and weighed approximately 110 lbs., almost twice as large as the largest living otters. It had a large and powerful jaw, with enlarged, bunodont (rounded-cusped) cheek teeth. These characteristics appear to have been adaptations for eating large shellfish and freshwater mollusks, both of which were found in abundance at Shuitangba. "From the vegetation and other animal groups found at Shuitangba, we know that it was a swampy, shallow lake with quite dense vegetation," said Dr. Su.
More:
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-01/cmon-sdl012017.php
[center] 
Artist’s reconstruction of two individuals of Siamogale melilutra, one of them feeding on a freshwater clam. The tapir in the background is Tapirus yunnanensis. Aquatic plants include water chestnut (Typha) and fox nut (Euryale), and the low shrub in foreground is Sichuan peppercorn (Zanthoxylum). Image credit: Mauricio Anton. [/center]
Siamogale melilutra: Giant Otter Fossils Reveal New Species
Jan 23, 2017 by News Staff / Source
The new otter species is based on a nearly complete cranium, mandible and partial skeletons of at least three individuals from the Shuitangba (‘Water Pond Platform’ in Chinese) fossil site in Yunnan Province, south-western China.
The ancient creature belongs to a little-known genus of extinct otters called Siamogale, according to the paleontologists. This genus goes back at least 18 million years and was previously known only from a single species from Thailand, Siamogale thailandica.
Named Siamogale melilutra, the new species weighed around 50 kg (110 lbs) — almost twice as large as the largest living otters.
“While Siamogale melilutra’s cranium is incredibly complete, it was flattened during the fossilization process. The bones were so delicate that we could not physically restore the cranium,” said team member Dr. Denise Su, from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
More:
http://www.sci-news.com/paleontology/siamogale-melilutra-giant-otter-04557.html