Supplementary data for: New paromomyids (Mammalia, Primates) from the Paleocene of southwestern Alberta, Canada, and an analysis of paromomyid interrelationships

Paromomyidae are one of several families of plesiadapiforms that
flourished during the Paleocene in North America soon after the extinction
of non-avian dinosaurs some 66 million years ago. Although they are often
among the best-represented plesiadapiforms in mammalian faunas in both
North America and Europe, the early history of paromomyids is poorly
understood, and their fossil record at higher latitudes is comparatively
depauperate. We report here on the discovery of two new species of
paromomyids from Paleocene deposits in southwestern Alberta: Edworthia
greggi new species is the second known species of the basal paromomyid
Edworthia Fox, Scott, and Rankin, whereas Ignacius glenbowensis new
species is among the most abundantly represented species of Ignacius
Matthew and Granger. These new discoveries document for the first time
parts of the upper dentition of Edworthia, and the new species of Ignacius
represents the first new, pre-Clarkforkian species of the genus to be
described in nearly one hundred years. A comprehensive phylogenetic
analysis of nearly all known paromomyid taxa (including the new species
described herein) recovered both species of Edworthia near the base of the
paromomyid tree in a polytomy with Paromomys depressidens, and a
paraphyletic Ignacius. The new paromomyids from Alberta not only increase
the known taxonomic diversity of Edworthia and Ignacius, but also add
significantly to knowledge of the dental anatomy of these poorly known
genera, and further add to a uniquely Canadian complement of Paleocene
plesiadapiforms.