Petromus fossil map
Where fossils of Petromus 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 | 0.129–0.0117 million years ago (Late Pleistocene) |
| Periods | Quaternary |
| Family | Petromuridae |
| Named by | Smith 1831 |
| Fossil records | 2 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | South Africa |
| Rock formations | txn:66302 |
About Petromus
Petromus is a genus of hystricognath rodents that contains the dassie rat (Petromus typicus) of southwestern Africa, the only extant member of this group and the entire family Petromuridae.
Two fossil species are known from the Pliocene, with the oldest being Petromus antiquus of the Early Pliocene.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Petromus (revision 1292602934), 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: Q10804847.
