Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 14, 2026

Valenopsalis

Valenopsalis is an extinct mammal from the Paleocene of North America (more specifically, Puercan-aged deposits in Wyoming, Montana and Saskatchewan. Originally referred to the genus Catopsalis, it has more recently been moved to its own genus as the former was understood to be a wastebasket taxon. It is currently considered to be the most basal representative of Taeniolabidoidea.

Last revised
Jun 14, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
129 w
Citations
1
Source
Valenopsalis
Temporal range: - Middle Puercan,
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Multituberculata
Superfamily: Taeniolabidoidea
Genus: Valenopsalis
Species:
V. joyneri
Binomial name
Valenopsalis joyneri
Williamson, 20151

Valenopsalis is an extinct mammal from the Paleocene of North America (more specifically, Puercan-aged deposits in Wyoming, Montana and Saskatchewan. Originally referred to the genus Catopsalis (C. joyneri), it has more recently been moved to its own genus as the former was understood to be a wastebasket taxon. It is currently considered to be the most basal representative of Taeniolabidoidea.

References

References

  1. Williamson, T.E.; Brusatte, S.L.; Secord, R.; Shelley, S (2015), "A new taeniolabidoid multituberculate (Mammalia) from the middle Puercan of the Nacimiento Formation, New Mexico, and a revision of taeniolabidoid systematics and phylogeny", Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 177: 183–208, doi:10.1111/zoj.12336