The cranial anatomy of Cricetops dormitor, an Oligocene fossil rodent from Mongolia. American Museum novitates ; no. 3275

Abstract

"A description of the cranial, mandibular, and dental morphology of Cricetops dormitor, an Oligocene muroid rodent, is presented. Cricetops exhibits a unique combination of primitive muroid characters (e.g., the presence of a large hystricomorphous infraorbital foramen) and derived muroid characters (e.g., a prominent metacone in the upper third molar) that cloud its taxonomic affiliations. In addition, Cricetops dormitor lacks many characters, including a highly inclined zygomatic plate, that have been used to unite members of the family Muridae. Overall, these results suggest that the phylogenetic position of Cricetops within the Muroidea needs to be reevaluated"--P. [1].