 Reference Base  Notes on the lesser one-horned rhinoceros, Rhinoceros son... |
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Colbert, E.H., 1942. Notes on the lesser one-horned rhinoceros, Rhinoceros sondaicus, 2. The position of Rhinoceros sondaicus in the phylogeny of the genus Rhinoceros. American Museum Novitates 1207: 1-5, figs. 1-3
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Taxonomy |
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All Rhino Species |
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In the first place, it might be well to indi- cate the limits of the genus Rhinoceros. This genus has been used, particularly by palaeontologists, to include a great number of species ranging in age from the Pliocene through the Pleistocene and into Recent times. Indeed, during the early history of vertebrate paleontology it was the practice to designate almost every fossil rhinoceros of post-Oligocene age as Rhinoceros, since in those days students of fossils naturally were but little concerned with the critical limitations for genera and species that have developed with the refinement of the science.
Obviously this is wrong and has been so recognized with the increasingly detailed studies that have been made in later years on fossil vertebrates. Consequently, at the present time most of the fossil species formerly designated as Rhinoceros have been allocated to other genera, and the genus has thus become strictly limited according to the evidence of its anatomical characters, which, as far as the osteology of the skull and the dentition are concerned, are as follows:
1. Expansion of the nasal bones into a boss or eminence, upon which is borne the single nasal horn.
2. Incisors present, and of large size.
3. Skull short, with occipital plane inclined forward.
4. Auditory meatus closed inferiorly by fusion of the post-tympanic and the post-glenoid processes.
5. Cheek-teeth sub-hypsodont.
Upon the basis of the above limitations, the genus Rhinoceros includes four good species, two of which are of recent age, and two of which are extinct. There are other fossil species of doubtful validity which need not be considered at this place. The four species with which we are concerned are:
Rhinoceros unicornis Linnaeus, 1758. Type of genus. Synonyms: R. indicus, R. asiaticus, R. stenocephalus. Pleistocene and Recent of India. Now very limited in range.
Rhinoceros sondaicus Desmarest, 1822. Synonyms: R. javanicus, R. inermis, R. nasalis, R. floweri. Possibly Pleistocene (of Borneo) and Recent of the Sundarbans, eastern Bengal, Assam, Burma, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Java.
Rhinoceros sivalensis Falconer and Cautley, 1847. Synonym: R. palaeindicus. Pleistocene of the Siwalik Hills of India.
Rhinoceros sinensis Owen, 1870. Synonyms: R. plicidens, R. simplicidens. Pleistocene of southwestern China.
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