Antilocapridae
Antilocapridae is a family of even-toed ungulates native to North America. Its only living species is the pronghorn, Antilocapra americana.
Pronghorn: A swift North American ungulate and the sole living member of Antilocapridae. It is the family’s sole living species and the source of its familiar name.
Pronghorn horn: A permanent bony core covered by a keratin sheath that is shed and regrown annually. Its branched, shedding sheath distinguishes the family member from other horned ungulates.
Merycodontinae: An extinct subfamily of small, often antler-like-horned antilocaprids from North America. Its fossils represent one major branch of the family’s extinct diversity.
Pleistocene megafauna extinction: The late-Pleistocene disappearance of many large animal species across much of the world. The loss of many large mammals left the pronghorn as the family’s lone survivor.
Artiodactyla: The mammalian order of even-toed ungulates, including deer, cattle, pigs, and camels. Antilocapridae belongs to this broader order of hoofed mammals.
Cursoriality: Anatomical and physiological specialization for sustained fast running. Pronghorns are exceptional runners, and their body plan reflects this specialization.
Cosoryx: An extinct genus of small antilocaprids known from Miocene North America. Its fossils document early stages of the family’s diversification.
Pronghorn conservation: Efforts to maintain pronghorn populations, habitat, and movement across North America. Conservation now focuses on protecting the only living antilocaprid.
Ruminantia: A mammalian clade of foregut-fermenting even-toed ungulates, including cattle, deer, and pronghorns. Pronghorns share this digestive and evolutionary grouping with true ruminants.
Ruminant digestion: Foregut fermentation in which microbes help break down plant material before it reaches the intestines. This digestive strategy supports pronghorn feeding on fibrous vegetation.