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Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, [12] are mammals of the order Pholidota (/ f ɒ l ɪ ˈ d oʊ t ə /). The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: Manis, Phataginus, and Smutsia. [13] Manis comprises four species found in Asia, while Phataginus and Smutsia include two species each, all found in sub-Saharan Africa. [14]
Eomanis fossils found in the Messel Pit in Germany are very similar in size and anatomy to living pangolins of the genus Manis, indicating that pangolins have remained largely unchanged in morphology and behavior for 50 million years. However, unlike modern pangolins, its tail and legs did not bear scales.
They are distributed throughout Africa, the Indian subcontinent and southeast Asia, and are usually found in habitats such as savannas, forests, grasslands and shrublands. Pholidotans range in size from the giant pangolin, at 30 kg (66 lb) and 68 cm (27 in) in length, to the tree pangolin, at only 2.3 kg (5.1 lb) and 34 cm (13 in) in length.
All species of living pangolin had been assigned to the genus Manis until the late 2000s, when research prompted the splitting of extant pangolins into three genera: Manis, Phataginus, and Smutsia. [ 5 ] [ 9 ]
Giant asian pangolin (Manis palaeojavanica ["ancient Javan pangolin"]), is an extinct species of pangolin (from genus Manis) that was native to Asia. [ 5 ] In 1926, E. Dubois described the bones of M. palaeojavanica discovered in Java .
[3] [4] [5] In 2009, pangolins and palaeanodonts were together placed within the clade Pholidotamorpha. [1] A 2012 study of new remains, found in Late Paleocene Mongolian strata , have led to the assessment that extinct genus Ernanodon is closely-related to another extinct genus, Metacheiromys , and is a member of the extinct order Palaeanodonta .
The Ocean City Tourism Commission discussed the potential of hosting the family-friendly monster truck event, dubbed "The Monsters of Metal Beach Brawl," in October 2024.
The giant pangolin is the largest of all pangolin species. While its average mass has not been measured, one specimen was found to weigh between 30 kg (66 lb) and 40 kg (88 lb). [9] Males are larger than females, with male body lengths about 137 cm (54 in) to 180 cm (71 in) and females about 112.5 cm (44.3 in) to 136.5 cm (53.7 in). [9]