Catopsalis

Catopsalis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Therapsida Class: Mammalia Order: Multituberculata Superfamily: Taeniolabidoidea Genus: Catopsalis
Species
C. alexanderi   C. calgariensis   C. collariensis   C. fissidens   C. foliatus   C. joyneri   C. waddleae
Ref.

Catopsalis is a North American mammal genus from the Paleocene of North America, (though some Canadian finds may be Upper Cretaceous). This animal was a relatively large member of the extinct order of Multituberculata. (As a rough guide to size, I'm using the following highly specialized terms of my own concoction; heavyweight, super-heavyweight, sumo-heavyweight and sumo-super-heavyweight = up to 30kg.) Most multituberculates were much smaller.
The genus was formally reported from the Upper Cretaceous of Mongolia. However, that material was subsequently referred to the genera of Djadochtatherium and Catopsbaatar.</b> For those of a technical inclination, Catopsalis is within the Suborder of Cimolodonta, and a member of the superfamily Taeniolabidoidea.

Genus: Catopsalis Cope ED, 1882
Aka: Polymastodon (partly)

Species: Catopsalis alexanderi Middleton MD, 1982
Place: Littleton Local Fauna, Colorado, Montana & Wyoming
Country: USA
Age: Puercan, Paleocene
Remarks: Some material of this genus was previously assigned to C. foliatus and C. joyneri. Specimens are included in the collections of the American Museum of Natural History[?], New York, and the Peabody Museum[?] of Yale. This species was a heavyweight for a multituberculate.
Reference: Middleton (1982), A new species and additional material of Catopsalis (Mammalia, Multituberculata) from the western interior of North Am. J. Paleontol. 56, p.1197-1206.

Species: Catopsalis calgariensis Russell LS, 1926
Place: Alberta & Wyoming
Country: Canada & USA
Age: Torrejonian? - Tiffanian?, Paleocene
Remarks: The holotype, collected in 1924, is in the collection of Alberta University. Further material is in the possession of Wyoming University. Sumo-heavyweight.
Reference: Russell (1926), A new species of the genus Catopsalis Cope from the Paskapoo formation of Alberta. Amer. Jour. Sci. 5, p.230-234, fig. 1.

Species: Catopsalis collariensis
Place: Red Deer River
Country: Canada
Age: Puercan, Paleocene
Remarks: The type fossil is listed as an employee at the AMNH, New York.
Reference:

Species: Catopsalis fissidens Cope ED, 1884
Aka: C. utahensis Gazin CL, 1939; Polymastodon fissidens Cope, 1884
Place: San Juan Basin, New Mexico & Utah
Country: USA
Age: Torrejonian, Paleocene
Remarks: The University of Wyoming boasts a possible specimen. Super-heavyweight.
Reference: Gazin (1939), A further contribution to the Dragon Paleocene fauna of central Utah. J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 29, p.273-286, 10 figs.

Species: Catopsalis foliatus Cope ED, 1882
Aka: C. johnstoni Fox RC, 1989; Polymastodon foliatus Cope, 1884
Place: San Juan Basin, New Mexico & Ravenscrag Formation
Country: USA & Canada
Age: Puercan, Paleocene
Remarks: C. johnstoni, from Saskatchewan, is also in the Alberta collection. Heavyweight.
Reference: Fox (1989), The Wounded Knee local fauna and mammalian evolution near the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary, Saskatchewan, Canada. Palaeontogr. Abt. A: Paläozool., Stratigr. 208, p.11-59 + 6 plates.

Species: Catopsalis joyneri Sloan RE & Van Valen L, 1965
Place: Bug Creek Anthills, Montana & Wyoming & Saskatchewan
Country: USA & Canada
Age: Upper Cretaceous? - Puercan, Paleocene
Remarks: One tooth studies at Wyoming and is Puercan. The Montana material is now thought to be Paleocene, though the Canadian site, (Cypress Hill region), is considered Upper Cretaceous.
Reference:

Species: Catopsalis waddleae Buckley GA, 1995
Place: Simpson Quarry, Montana
Country: USA
Age: Puercan, Paleocene
Remarks: Sumo-heavyweight.
Reference:

Page reference: Kielan-Jaworowska Z & Hurum JH (2001), Phylogeny and Systematics of multituberculate mammals. Paleontology 44, p.389-429.

(This information has been derived from [1] (http://home.arcor.de/ktdykes/Taenio.htm) MESOZOIC MAMMALS; Eucosmodontidae, Microcosmodontidae and Taeniolabidoidea, an internet directory. As that's my webpage, there are no issues of copyright. Trevor Dykes)