Ceratogaulus

Ceratogaulus is an extinct genus of burrowing rodents from North America, known for paired bony projections on the skull. Its fossils date from the Miocene and Pliocene.

Connect

Mammal: A vertebrate whose females produce milk and whose body is typically covered with hair or fur. Ceratogaulus belongs to the mammal lineage, despite its striking skull horns.
Fossoriality: The behavioral and anatomical adaptation of an animal for digging or living underground. Ceratogaulus was a burrowing rodent whose body was shaped by a subterranean life.
Ceratogaulus hatcheri: An extinct species of horned gopher known from North American fossil deposits. It is one named species used to document the genus’s fossil diversity.
Sexual selection: A form of natural selection driven by differences in access to mates. One proposed explanation for the horns is that they helped individuals compete for mates.
Rodent: A mammal in the order Rodentia, characterized by continuously growing incisors adapted for gnawing. Its incisors and ancestry identify Ceratogaulus as a rodent.
Geomyidae: A family of burrowing rodents that includes pocket gophers, native to North and Central America. Ceratogaulus is generally placed within the pocket-gopher family.
Ceratogaulus rhinoceros: An extinct species of horned gopher described from North American fossils. Its species name underscores the conspicuous skull projections characteristic of the genus.
Paleobiology: The study of ancient organisms and their biology through fossils and geological evidence. Reconstructing Ceratogaulus behavior requires interpreting incomplete fossil evidence.
Gopher: A burrowing rodent, especially a member of the family Geomyidae, native to the Americas. The name “horned gopher” reflects its resemblance and likely ecological kinship to living gophers.
Rodent incisor: A chisel-shaped, continuously growing front tooth found in rodents. Its digging lifestyle made the use of incisors in excavation a relevant anatomical question.