Radinskya

Radinskya is an extinct perissodactyl-like mammal from the Paleocene of China (Nongshanian ALMA). It is named after palaeontologist and perissodactyl expert Leonard Radinsky who died prematurely in 1985.

Before the discovery of Radinskya, palaeontologists speculated on an American origin for the tethythere-perissodactyl radiation that took place during the Paleocene-Eocene transition (around ). The primitive Radinskya from China made it clear that this radiation began in Asia during the Paleocene, from where it spread to North America, Europe, and Africa during the Eocene. With its enigmatic position at the base of this radiation, Radinskya is a member of the Chinese Paleocene fauna which includes primitive tethytheres such as Minchenella and the oldest arsinoitheres; it shares many characters with perissodactyls and some with phenacolophids, but is too primitive to be called either a horse, a rhino, or a tapir.