Toxodon, the Extinct Rhino-Like Creature That Roamed South America

South America has always been home to some of the largest creatures to ever live. In fact, some of the largest dinosaurs lived in the region and have names like Argentinosaurus. Although the dinosaurs were the largest land animals to ever live, there were plenty of large creatures to come after them! Toxodon is an extinct genus of mammals that lived in South America and somewhat resembles modern-day’s rhinos. Toxodon is unique in that it was among the last members of its order. When it went extinct, there weren’t any other creatures like it! As a genus, Toxodon wasn’t a single species, but a group of related species. Still, they were all quite similar and were the last of their kind. The Toxodon genus belonged to the Notoungulata order, a group of creatures that ranged in size from rabbits to rhinos, and everything in between. While Toxodon was around, it would have been the largest member of the order. Even more, Toxodon was likely the largest and most common hoofed mammal in South America at the time.

What Did Toxodon Look Like?

Toxodon was a strange creature. In fact, Charles Darwin was one of the first people ever to discover fossils of Toxodon and described it like this: Although his description of the creature’s anatomy was roughly correct, he wasn’t exactly right as to its ecological niche (Toxodon wasn’t aquatic, for example). With further research, however, more accurate numbers have been given. Toxodon was probably 8 feet 10 inches long and weighed upwards of 3,120 lbs, making it an extremely large animal. For reference, modern rhinos range from 2,000 up to 7,000 lbs.

When Did Toxodon Live?

Toxodon lived during the Late Miocene into the Holocene epochs, right at the beginning of the Neogene Period. The Neogene Period lasted from 23 million years ago until 5.3 million years ago. Incredibly, Toxodon lived from 11.6 million years ago until 0.011 million years ago (11,000 years ago). This means that Toxodon was alive and well while humans were around! In fact, many scientists believe that human hunting played a role in the extinction of these large animals. Remains at that Arroyo Seco 2 site in Pampas (Argentina) showed that humans were likely butchering these animals, giving credence to the idea. Outside of human hunting, Toxodon was also impacted by the Quaternary extinction event, an event that also spurred the decline of other large megafauna in South America.

Where Did Toxodon Live?

Holocene

Abismo Ponto de Flecha, Brazil

Pleistocene

San José, Fortin Tres Pozos, Chaco and Luján Formations, ArgentinaTarija and Ñuapua Formations, BoliviaBrazilParaguaySopas and Dolores Formations, Uruguay

Miocene-Pliocene

Monte Hermoso Formation, Argentina

Miocene

Ituzaingó Formation

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