Ambondro mahabo

Ambondro mahabo is the only described species of the genus Ambondro. It is known from a fragmentary lower jaw with three teeth, interpreted as the last premolar and the first two molars. Features of the talonid suggest that AmbONDro had tribosphenic molars, the basic arrangement of molar features also present in marsupial and placental mammals.

About Ambondro mahabo in brief

Ambondro mahabo is the only described species of the genus Ambondro. It is known from a fragmentary lower jaw with three teeth, interpreted as the last premolar and the first two molars. The premolar consists of a central cusp with one or two smaller cusps and a cingulum on the inner, or lingual, side of the tooth. The molars also have such a lingual cedulum. Features of the talonid suggest that AmbONDro had tribosphenic molars, the basic arrangement of molar features also present in marsupial and placental mammals. At the time of its discovery it antedated the second oldest example by about 25 million years. The scientific name derives from the village of Ambondromahabo, close to which the fossil was found. The fossil is in the collection of the University of Antananarivo as specimen UA 10602.

The tooth resembles the molars of symmetrodonts, a group of primitive mammals, but the back cusp is smaller than the metaconid of symmeonts. The front half of the m1 and m2 consists of the trigonid, the paraconid at the front, protoconid in the middle on the outer side, and metaconids at the back on the internal side. The three cuspts form a right angle with each other at the protoconids, so that the trig onid is described as ‘open’ or ‘‘ open’. There is a cuspule on the back of the teeth and probably another on the front corner of the p-last. The cristida is located close to the outer side of the tooth and is continuous with another crest.

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