[749] An able memoir in the Penny Cyclopædia, Art. Megatheridæ, and another under the title "Unau," will present the student with an epitome of all that is at present known of these extinct beings.
GLYPTODON.
Glyptodon (sculptured-tooth) clavipes. [Lign. 264].—The bony tesselated carapace, or shield, which was formerly assigned to the Megatherium (Bd. i. p. 159) has been proved,[750] by the discovery of other specimens, to belong to a gigantic animal, whose bones are occasionally found associated with those of the Megatherium, and which is closely allied to the Armadillo. This discovery was made by my friend, Sir Woodbine Parish, to whose indefatigable exertions the Hunterian Museum is indebted for its most splendid relics of fossil Edentata.[751] The bony dermal coat of the Glyptodon (a fine specimen of which is in the Hunterian Museum) was not disposed in rings as in the Armadillo, but is made up of polygonal pieces, accurately articulating with each other, and continuous over the whole of the upper part of the body and part of the tail; the tail also is enclosed in a case of this kind, like a sword in its scabbard (Petrif. p. 359, Lign. 75).
[750] See Geol. Trans. 1835, p. 438, &c.; and Prof. Owen’s elaborate Memoir on the Glyptodon in Geol. Trans. 2d ser. p. 81, pl. x. xiii.
[751] A restored figure of the Glyptodon, together with the skeletons of the Megathere and the Mylodon, are beautifully illustrated in the interesting volume on "Buenos Ayres and the Provinces of Rio de la Plata." 2d Edit. By Sir Woodbine Parish, K. C. H. &c.
The teeth of this animal, which are eight in number on each side of each jaw, are sculptured laterally, by two wide and deep channels ([Lign. 264], fig. 1), which divide the grinding surface of the tooth into three portions ([Lign. 264], fig. 2). The hind foot is very peculiar (see [Lign. 264], fig. 3), presenting an extreme modification of the same general plan of structure as that of the Armadillo. The skeleton of this animal constitutes the type of a distinct genus (Glyptodon), related to the Armadillo (Dasypus).
Lign. 264. Glyptodon clavipes.
Tooth and Bones of the Left Foot of a colossal Quadruped allied to the Armadillo (reduced size).
Pleistocene, near Monte Video.
| Fig. | 1.— | Side view of a tooth, showing the deep lateral channels. The original four inches long. |
| 2.— | Grinding surface of the same. | |
| 3.— | Outside view of the left hind-foot. Length of the original about fourteen inches, from the heel to the toe. (From the Geol. Trans. 2d. ser. vol. vi. pl. x.) |