Capra dalii is a fossil species of goat discovered in Georgia in 2006.[1] It is named for the Georgian goddess Dali, who was considered the guardian of hoofed animals such as ibexes and goats.[2][3] Fragments of C. dalii fossils were first located at the Dmanisi archaeological site, and are believed to be related to the west Caucasian tur, Capra caucasica.[1] The species is believed to have existed during the Early Pleistocene, around 1.76 million years ago, making it the oldest known example of the Capra genus.[4]
| Capra dalii Temporal range: Early Pleistocene
| |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Bovidae |
| Subfamily: | Caprinae |
| Tribe: | Caprini |
| Genus: | Capra |
| Species: | †C. dalii
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Capra dalii Bukhsianidze & Vekua, 2006
| |
Based on the fossil fragments found, C. dalii is believed to have been a large Capra species, with horns that curved outward. Its teeth are similar to those of Hemitragus orientalis, another fossil species.[5]
Some of the C. dalii fossil fragments are held in the National History collection at the Dmanisi Museum-Reserve, part of the Georgian National Museum.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Bukhsianidze & Vekua 2006, p. 159.
- ^ Bukhsianidze & Vekua 2006, p. 160.
- ^ Charachidzé 1993, p. 18.
- ^ Bukhsianidze & Vekua 2006, p. 170.
- ^ Van Der Made, Carlos Calero & Mancheño 2008, p. 20.
- ^ "Capra dalii". Natural History - Georgian National Museum. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
Bibliography
edit- Bukhsianidze, Maia; Vekua, Abesalom (2006-11-15). "Capra dalii nov. sp. (Caprinae, Bovidae, Mammalia) at the limit of Plio-Pleistocene from Dmanisi (Georgia)". Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg: 159–171 – via ResearchGate.
- Charachidzé, Georges (1993-05-15). "The Religion and Myths of the Georgians of the Mountains". In Bonnefoy, Yves (ed.). American, African, and Old European Mythologies. Translated by Doniger, Wendy. University of Chicago Press. pp. 254–262. ISBN 9780226064574.
- Van Der Made, Jan; Carlos Calero, Juan Abel; Mancheño, Miguel Ángel (30 April 2008). "New material of the goat Capra? alba from the Lower Pleistocene of Quibas (Spain); notes on sexual dimorphism, stratigraphic distribution and systematics" (PDF). Bollettino della Società paleontologica italiana. 47 (1). Società Paleontologica Italiana: 13–23. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 8 November 2018.