Eotragus

Eotragus is an extinct genus of early bovid. Species belonging to the genus inhabited Europe, Africa, and Asia during the Miocene some 20-18 million years ago. It is related to the modern nilgai and four-horned antelope. It was small and probably lived in woodland environments.

Eotragus Temporal range: Early Miocene
Eotragus sansaniensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Family:	Bovidae
Subfamily:	Bovinae
Tribe:	Boselaphini
Genus:	†Eotragus Pilgrim, 1939
Species
†E. sansaniensis †E. cristatus †E. halamagaiensis †E. noyei †E. artenensis

Horns

Comparative scale between Eotragus and a domestic cat

Discovery

E. sansaniensis was first described in 1851 by Édouard Lartet, after fossil remains including teeth and a partial skull were unearthed from the Sansan paleontological site southwestern France.^[1] It was initially assigned the scientific name Antilope sansaniensis, before later being assigned to the new genus Eotragus once it was understood to be an early bovid.

Palaeoecology

E. lampangensis, based on carbon isotope studies, inhabited habitats intermediate between forest and grassland.^[2] Dental microwear analysis suggests that Eotragus was most likely a browser as opposed to a grazer.^[3]