Laurasiatheria is a clade with the rank of cohort or super-order, of the Placentalia (living) or Eutheria (Placentals and their extinct ancestors) subclass of mammals, based on molecular and DNA research. The name comes from the theory that these mammals evolved on the supercontinent of Laurasia, after it split from Gondwana when Pangaea broke up. It is a sister group to Euarchontoglires. It includes the following extant orders:
- Core Insectivora: moles, hedgehogs, shrews, solenodons (cosmopolitan)
- Chiroptera: bats (cosmopolitan)
- Cetartiodactyla: cosmopolitan; includes former orders Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates, including pigs, hippopotamus, camels, giraffe, deer, antelope, cattle, sheep, goats).
- Perissodactyla: odd-toed ungulates
- Ferae:
- Pholidota: pangolins or scaly anteaters (Africa, South Asia).
- Carnivora: carnivores (cosmopolitan)
Within the Laurasiatheria, the Insectivora appears to be the most divergent branch. Some studies link the Perissodactyla and Ferae in a clade Zooamata; others link Perissodactyla and Cetartiodactyla in a clade of true ungulates. Neither clade is well supported.
Laurasiatheria is also posited to include several extinct orders:
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurasiatheria under GFDL
