Allotheria facts for kids
Quick facts for kids AllotheriaTemporal range: Upper Triassic – Oligocene
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| Skull of Ptilodus | |
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Theriiformes
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Allotheria
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The Allotheria were an extinct group of mammals. They lived a very long time ago, during the Mesozoic Era, also known as the Age of Dinosaurs. These ancient mammals were quite successful for their time.
Allotheria are related to other early mammal groups like the prototheria and theria. They had some special features that helped them survive and thrive for millions of years.
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What Made Allotheria Special?
Their Unique Teeth
One of the most important things about Allotheria was their special teeth. They had lower molar teeth with two rows of bumps, called cusps. These teeth were perfect for chewing their food. This unique tooth structure helped them eat different kinds of plants and other things.
How They Had Babies
Allotheria also had a narrow pelvis (hip bone). This suggests that they gave birth to very tiny, helpless babies. This is similar to how marsupials (like kangaroos or opossums) have their young today. Their babies would have been born very undeveloped and needed a lot of care.
When Did Allotheria Live?
The Allotheria group lived for a very long time. The earliest known group, the Haramiyida, appeared during the Triassic period. This was about 230 million years ago.
Another important group, the Multituberculates, survived even longer. They lived until the Oligocene epoch, which was about 35 million years ago. This means that different types of Allotheria were around for nearly 200 million years! That's a much longer time than humans have been on Earth.
See also
In Spanish: Aloterios para niños
