Name:
Alphadon (Greek for "first tooth"); pronounced AL-fah-don
Habitat:
Woodlands of North America
Historical Period:
Late Cretaceous (70 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About one foot long and 12 ounces
Diet:
Insects, fruit and small animals
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Long, prehensile tail; long hind legs
About Alphadon:
As is the case with many early mammals, Alphadon is known mainly by its teeth, which peg it as one of the earliest marsupials (the non-placental mammals represented today by Australian kangaroos and koala bears). Appearance-wise, Alphadon probably resembled a small opossum, and despite its tiny size (only about three-quarters of a pound) it was still one of the largest mammals of its day. It's believed that Alphadon spent most of its time in trees, well out of the way of the stomping dinosaurs of the late Cretaceous period.
