Carpolestes fossil map
Where fossils of Carpolestes have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 56 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 56 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 | 60.9–48.07 million years ago (Selandian to Ypresian) |
| Periods | Paleogene |
| Family | Carpolestidae |
| Named by | Simpson 1928 |
| Fossil records | 94 occurrences at 27 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States |
| Rock formations | Fort Union, txn:40741, Willwood, Wasatch, Lower Variegated Sequence |
About Carpolestes
Carpolestes (from Ancient Greek καρπός (karpós), meaning "fruit", and λῃστής (lēistḗs), meaning "robber", and thus, "fruit robber") is a genus of extinct primate-like mammals from the late Paleocene of North America. It first existed around 58 million years ago. The three species of Carpolestes appear to form a lineage, with the earliest occurring species, C. dubius, ancestral to the type species, C. nigridens, which, in turn, was ancestral to the most recently occurring species, C. simpsoni.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Carpolestes (revision 1340768720), 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: Q3753270.
