Amongst the Even-toed Ungulates, we may note the occurrence of
Swine (_Suida_), of forms allied to the Camels (_Camelidoe_), and
of various kinds of Deer (_Cervidoe_); but the most interesting
Pliocene Mammal belonging to this section is the great _Hippopotamus
major_ of Britain and Europe. This well-known species is very
closely allied to the living _Hippopotamus amphibius_ of Africa,
from which it is separated only by its larger dimensions, and by
certain points connected with the conformation of the skeleton.
It is found very abundantly in the Pliocene deposits of Italy and
France, associated with the remains of the Elephant, Mastodon,
and Rhinoceros, and it survived into the earlier portion of the
Post-Pliocene period. During this last-mentioned period, it extended
its range northwards, and is found associated with the Reindeer,
the Bison, and other northern animals. From this fact it has been
inferred, with great probability, that the _Hippotamus major_
was furnished with a long coat of hair and fur, thus differing
from its nearly hairless modern representative, and resembling
its associates, the Mammoth and the Woolly Rhinoceros.
[Illustration: Fig. 250.--Third milk-molar of the left side of
the upper jaw of _Mastodon Arvernensis_, showing the grinding
surface. Pliocene.]
Passing on to the Pliocene Proboscideans, we find that the great
_Deinotheria_ of the Miocene have now wholly disappeared, and the
sole representatives of the order are Mastodons and Elephants.
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