Pyrotherium

Pyrotherium Temporal range: Oligocene (Deseadan) ~28.4–23 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
P. romeroi skull in Beneski Museum of Natural History
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	†Pyrotheria
Family:	†Pyrotheriidae
Genus:	†Pyrotherium Ameghino, 1888
Type species
†Pyrotherium romeroi Ameghino, 1888
Other species
†P. macfaddeni Shockey & Daza, 2004
Synonyms
List Parapyrotherium planum Ameghino, 1902 Pyrotherium sorondoi Ameghino, 1894 Pyrotherium giganteum Ameghino, 1897 Pyrotherium crassidens Ameghino, 1902 Pyrotherium planum Ameghino, 1897 Pyrotherium trilophodon Ameghino, 1902 Pyrotherium pluteum Ameghino, 1901 Ricardowenia mysteriosa Ameghino, 1901

Pyrotherium ('fire beast') is an extinct genus of South American ungulate in the order Pyrotheria, that lived in what is now Argentina and Bolivia during the Late Oligocene.^[1] It was named Pyrotherium because the first specimens were excavated from an ancient volcanic ash deposit. Fossils of the genus have been found in the Deseado and Sarmiento Formations of Argentina and the Salla Formation of Bolivia.

So far, two valid species have been described; Pyrotherium romeroi from Argentina, and P. macfaddeni from Bolivia, at the end of Oligocene. P. romeroi in particular is the most recent known pyrothere in the fossil record and best known for its fossil remains, which although incomplete are the best preserved in the entire order. It is also the largest, with an estimated body length from 2.9 to 3.6 meters (9.5 to 11.8 ft).^[2] Pyrotherium is believed to have developed a small trunk;^[3] despite its close resemblance to elephants (proboscideans), though, it is not related to them, although Pyrotherium's true relationship is still controversial today.^[2]