Desmostylus

This is a skeleton model of a Desmostylus; a mammal that has become extinct. It was found amid the fossiliferous sandstones (fossil shells) in Utanobori, Esashi-cho, Hokkaido. Its preservation almost complete with the head makes this skeleton model a rare specimen worldwide. Desmostylus fossils are found only in the sediments accumulated in the shallows of the Pacific Ocean between Japan and North America between 23 million and 11 million years ago. Desmostylians are characterized by their back teeth shaped like cylindrical pillars bunched together. It is believed that they used the back teeth to consume clams and seaside grasses. Moreover, their elbow and knee joints suggest that, as with crocodiles and frogs, the Desmostylus were bowlegged creatures.