Stratum.black
Megalonyx — Megalonyx
Megalonyx — Daderot, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Mammal

Megalonyx

Jefferson's ground sloth

Megalonyx jeffersonii is the Pleistocene ground sloth described by Thomas Jefferson from a claw found in a West Virginia cave. Its peg-like, enamel-less teeth and large claw cores are found in Florida rivers and Midwestern caves; sloth claw cores and teeth are a Peace River staple. Sloth teeth are rootless cylinders that are easy to recognise once seen.

PhylumChordata
ClassMammalia
OrderPilosa
FamilyMegalonychidae
GroupMammal
Rank (PBDB)genus· Paleobiology Database
AuthorJefferson 1799· Paleobiology Database
Classification (PBDB)Chordata › Mammalia › Xenarthra › Megalonychidae· Paleobiology Database
Range (PBDB)9.4–0 Ma· Paleobiology Database
PBDB occurrences168· Paleobiology Database

Photographs

Megalonyx — Megalonyx leptostomus Cope
Megalonyx leptostomus Cope — Smithsonian Institution (NMNHPALEO), Smithsonian Open Access, CC0
Megalonyx — Solanum megalonyx Sendtn. (NHMUK BM001034855)
Solanum megalonyx Sendtn. (NHMUK BM001034855) — © The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, Natural History Museum (London) Data Portal, CC BY 4.0
Megalonyx — Solanum megalonyx Sendtn. (NHMUK BM001035175)
Solanum megalonyx Sendtn. (NHMUK BM001035175) — © The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, Natural History Museum (London) Data Portal, CC BY 4.0

Age

Formations

Elsewhere

Cite this article

Stratum Study. "Megalonyx" (Taxon). Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-19. https://stratum.black/study/taxa/megalonyx. Accessed 2026-09-20.

BibTeX · CSL-JSON

@misc{stratum-megalonyx,
  title        = {Megalonyx},
  author       = {{Stratum Study}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/study/taxa/megalonyx}},
  year         = {2026},
  note         = {Taxon article, Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-19; sources: stratum, pbdb, wikidata, commons, smithsonian, nhm. Accessed 2026-09-20.}
}

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