Megalenhydris
Encyclopedia
Megalenhydris barbaricina is a Late Pleistocene
giant otter
from Sardinia
. It is known from a single skeleton
, discovered in the Grotta di Ispinigoli near Dorgali
, and was described in 1987. It is one of three extinct otter species from Sardinia. The others are Algarolutra majori and Sardolutra ichnusae.
This otter was large, much larger than the other two species. The structure of the teeth points to a diet of shellfish
and/or crustaceans. A special characteristic of the species are the flattened first few caudal vertebrae (the rest of the caudal vetrebrae are not known). This might point to a slightly flattened tail.
Late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is a stage of the Pleistocene Epoch. The beginning of the stage is defined by the base of the Eemian interglacial phase before the final glacial episode of the Pleistocene 126,000 ± 5,000 years ago. The end of the stage is defined exactly at 10,000 Carbon-14 years BP...
giant otter
Otter
The Otters are twelve species of semi-aquatic mammals which feed on fish and shellfish, and also other invertebrates, amphibians, birds and small mammals....
from Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. It is known from a single skeleton
Skeleton
The skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...
, discovered in the Grotta di Ispinigoli near Dorgali
Dorgali
thumb|250px|[[Giants' grave]] of Sa Ena e Thomes.Dorgali is a comune in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about 230 km northeast of Cagliari and about 38 km east of Nuoro in the Seaside Supramonte mountain area.Economy is mostly based on the vine and wine...
, and was described in 1987. It is one of three extinct otter species from Sardinia. The others are Algarolutra majori and Sardolutra ichnusae.
This otter was large, much larger than the other two species. The structure of the teeth points to a diet of shellfish
Shellfish
Shellfish is a culinary and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environments, some kinds are found only in freshwater...
and/or crustaceans. A special characteristic of the species are the flattened first few caudal vertebrae (the rest of the caudal vetrebrae are not known). This might point to a slightly flattened tail.