Lumakoala

Lumakoala; Temporal range: Oligocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Infraclass:	Marsupialia
Order:	Diprotodontia
Family:	Phascolarctidae
Genus:	†Lumakoala; Crichton et al.,2023
Species:	†L. blackae
Binomial name
	†Lumakoala blackae; Crichton et al.,2023

Lumakoala is an extinct genus of phascolarctid that inhabited the Northern Territory of Australia during the Oligocene epoch. It was a member of the Pwerte Marnte Marnte Local Fauna and is known from a single species, Lumakoala blackae.

Palaeoecology

Fossilised teeth of Lumakoala blackae were characterised by their relatively undeveloped enamel crenulations and their diminutive crown height, suggesting that it fed primarily on a diet of soft plants. It is hypothesised that it occasionally opportunistically engaged in insectivory like extant members of Phalangeriformes do.^[1]

References

^ Crichton, Arthur I.; Beck, Robin M. D.; Couzens, Aidan M. C.; Worthy, Trevor H.; Camens, Aaron B.; Prideaux, Gavin J. (4 September 2023). "A probable koala from the Oligocene of central Australia provides insights into early diprotodontian evolution". Scientific Reports. 13 (1): 14521. Bibcode:2023NatSR..1314521C. doi:10.1038/s41598-023-41471-0. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 10477348. PMID 37666885.

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[1] Crichton, Arthur I.; Beck, Robin M. D.; Couzens, Aidan M. C.; Worthy, Trevor H.; Camens, Aaron B.; Prideaux, Gavin J. (4 September 2023). "A probable koala from the Oligocene of central Australia provides insights into early diprotodontian evolution". Scientific Reports. 13 (1): 14521. Bibcode:2023NatSR..1314521C. doi:10.1038/s41598-023-41471-0. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 10477348. PMID 37666885.

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