Arboroharamiya fossil map
Where fossils of Arboroharamiya have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 160 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 160 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Early mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 168.2–152.21 million years ago (Bathonian to Kimmeridgian) |
| Periods | Jurassic |
| Family | Arboroharamiyidae |
| Named by | Zheng et al. 2013 |
| Fossil records | 6 occurrences at 2 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | China |
| Rock formations | Tiaojishan |
About Arboroharamiya
Arboroharamiya is an extinct genus of mammaliaform from the Late Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation of Inner Mongolia, China. Arboroharamiya belongs to a group of mammaliaforms called Haramiyida. The genus contains three species: A. jenkinsi (the type species), A. allinhopsoni and A. fuscus. Based on the melanosomes preserved in its fur, Arboroharamiya likely had a uniformly dark-brown coloration, similar to that of other early mammaliaforms including Vilevolodon and Megaconus.
When Arboroharamiya was included in a phylogenetic analysis of early mammals and mammaliaforms, Haramiyida was found to be a group within Mammalia, the true mammals. However, in a different analysis which included Megaconus, Haramiyida was placed outside Mammalia as a more basal ("primitive") group of mammaliaforms. The classification of Arboroharamiya and other haramiyidans as true mammals fits with what most previous studies have found, but since Arboroharamiya and Megaconus were not included in the same phylogenetic analysis, their position within Mammaliaformes remains uncertain.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Arboroharamiya (revision 1346137183), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q14611019.
