Micromeryx

Micromeryx is an extinct genus of musk deer that lived during the Miocene epoch. Fossil remains were found in Europe and Asia. The earliest record of the genus comes from the Sibnica 4 paleontological site near Rekovac in Serbia.

Characteristics

This animal was very similar to the modern musk deer of East Asia. However, Micromeryx was much smaller: it perhaps reached 5 kilograms. Teeth were very similar to those of the extant Cephalophus but more primitive. Like in the present moschids, the males of these animals were equipped with long upper canines, protruding from the mouth when it was closed. The body was slender and short, while the legs were extremely elongated.

Systematics

Micromeryx was a primitive representative of the moschids, a group of primitive ruminants related to deer and cattle. They had a remarkable expansion during the Miocene and Pliocene and are currently represented by a few species, such as the aforementioned Moschus moschiferus. A somewhat similar animal was Hispanomeryx, which lived in about the same area as Micromeryx but went extinct during the Middle Miocene.

Distribution

Micromeryx probably originated in Western Asia and then spread to Europe and East Asia. Many fossils of this animal have been found in a vast geographical area ranging from Anatolia to Somosaguas [fossil site|Spain] and China.

Palaeoecology

was an important component of the diet of M. flourensianus, with frugivory in this species being supported by evidence from dental microwear, dental mesowear, Sr/Ca ratios, and δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O ratios, whereas the contemporary M.? eiselei was a leaf browser. M. flourensianus was preyed on by Proputorius sansaniensis, Taxodon sansaniensis, and Martes sansaniensis.