Hipparion

Extinct genus of mammals

Hipparion is an extinct genus of three toed, medium sized equine belonging to the extinct tribe Hipparionini, who lived about 10 5 million years ago. While the genus formerly included most hipparionines, the genus is now more narrowly defined as hipparionines from Eurasia spanning the Late Miocene. Hipparion evolved from Cormohipparion,

The genus "Hipparion" was used for over a century as a form classification to describe over a hundred species of Holartic hipparionines from the Pliocene and Miocene eras that had three toes and isolated protocones. Since then, groups such as the genera Cormohipparion and Neohipparion were proposed to further sort these species, typically based on differences in skull morphology. These species are now known as "Hipparion" in sensu lato (s. l.), or a broad sense.

Hipparion in sensu stricto (s. s.), or a strict sense, describes the genus of Old World hipparionines from remains found in Eurasia (France, Greece, Turkey, Iran, and China) from the Late Miocene era (~10 5 Ma, or million years ago). The assignment of remains from elsewhere to the genus, such as North America and Africa, is uncertain.

Hipparion was typically medium in size, at about 1.4 m (4.6 ft) tall at the shoulder. The estimated body mass of Hipparion depends on the species, but ranges from about 135 to 200 kg (about 298 to 441 lbs).

Hipparion lived in the Old World Savannah Biome, or OWSB, consisting of woodlands to grasslands.

In the Old World, Hipparion experienced population decline and extinction down a North to South gradient, as did many other Miocene vertebrates. This trend is believed to be due to environmental changes caused by global cooling and decreasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. H. tehonense
H. theniusi Melentis, 1969
H. venustum Leidy, 1860