Equus fossil map
Where fossils of Equus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 0 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 0 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 | 23.04 million years ago to the present (Aquitanian to Holocene) |
| Periods | Neogene, Quaternary |
| Family | Equidae |
| Named by | Linnaeus 1758 |
| Fossil records | 3,284 occurrences at 873 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States, Kenya, South Africa, Ethiopia, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Tanzania, India, Canada … |
| Rock formations | txn:42984, Koobi Fora, "unnamed sandstone", Palm Spring, Shungura, Nachukui |
About Equus
Equus is a genus of herbivorous mammals in the perissodactyl (odd-toed ungulates) family Equidae, which includes horses, asses and zebras. Within the Equidae, Equus is the only recognized extant taxon, comprising eight living species, as well as numerous extinct species known only from fossils. All members of the genus are cursorial quadrupeds with slender unguligrade (toe walking) legs, long-snouted head with hypsodonty, relatively long necks with dorsal manes (erect in most subspecies), and long multi-stranded tail. They are mostly pseudoruminant grazers with simpler digestive systems than ruminants but able to subsist on lower-quality vegetation.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Equus (genus) (revision 1381128319), 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: Q27022.
