CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · General Reference

Cimolodonta

suborder of mammals (fossil)

Cross-disciplinary reference desk with index cards, atlas, dictionary and catalogue
General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ603912
Source-derived summary

Cimolodonta is a clade of multituberculate mammals that lived from the Cretaceous to the Eocene. They probably lived something of a rodent-like existence until their ecological niche was assumed by true rodents. The more basal multituberculates are found in a different suborder, "Plagiaulacida", a paraphyletic group containing all non cimolodontan multituberculates.

Cimolodonta is apparently a natural (monophyletic) suborder. Remains have been identified from across the Northern Hemisphere. They first appeared during the Aptian, and completely replaced the more primitive plagiaulacidans by the early Late Cretaceous. The taxon is recognized as the informal "Paracimexomys group" and the superfamilies Djadochtatherioidea, Taeniolabidoidea, and Ptilodontoidea. Additionally, and of uncertain affinities, are the families Cimolomyidae, Boffiidae, Eucosmodontidae, Kogaionidae, Microcosmodontidae and the two genera Uzbekbaatar and Viridomys. More precise placement of these types awaits further discoveries and analysis.

Taxonomy

Suborder †Cimolodonta McKenna, 1975

Superfamily Incertae sedis

Family Incertae sedis

Subfamily Incertae sedis

Genus ?Ameribaatar Eaton & Cifelli, 2001

Genus ?Barbatodon Rãdulescu & Samson, 1986

Genus ?Bryceomys Eaton, 1995

Genus Cedaromys Eaton & Cifelli, 2001

Genus ?Dakotamys Eaton, 1995; (Early Cretaceous, Central North America)

Genus ?Fractinus Higgins, 2003

Genus Halodon Marsh, 1889

Genus Koshikibaatar Sera, 2026

Genus Ptilodus (Marsh, 1889) Gidley, 1909

Genus ?Uzbekbaatar Kielan-Jaworowska & Nesov, 1992

"Paracimexomys group" Archibald, 1982

Genus Cimexomys Sloan & Van Valen, 1965

Genus Paracimexomys Archibald, 1982

Family Boffiidae Hahn & Hahn, 1983

Genus Boffius Vianey-Liaud, 1979

Family Cimolomyidae Marsh, 1889 sensu Kielan-Jaworowska & Hurum, 2001

Genus Camurodon Shelley et al., 2026

Genus Buginbaatar Kielan-Jaworowska & Sochava, 1969

Genus Cimolomys Marsh, 1889 (syn.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Cimolodonta” is suborder of mammals (fossil). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Cimolodonta, suborder and mammals, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1975, 2001, 1986, 1995—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. For this dossier, Cimolodonta, suborder and mammals is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “suborder of mammals (fossil)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q603912. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1975, 2001, 1986 and 1995.

Critical limits

The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Cimolodonta”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Cimolodonta primary sources, Cimolodonta archive and Cimolodonta research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Cimolodonta”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
  3. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Cimolodonta” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.