The Pliohippus might just be the grandfather of modern horse as it is believed that this branch of the family tree gave rise to our trusty mounts. They lived around 12-6 million years ago in the Miocine.
A Plio-Mystery
The Pliohippus possessed large depressions in front of their eyes which are not present in modern day equus. Although their function is unknown, these facial depressions may be resonating chambers for vocalizing.
The Pliohippus may have had a larger vocal range than the equines of today.
Two Different Genres
With a name like Pliohippus it would stand to reason that they lived during the Pliocene, but they research is beginning to show that they didn’t. Although, there is a genus branch of their family that lived during the Pliocene called Dinohippus.
Not An Exact Science
Sadly we didn’t have scientists millions of years ago, so trying to piece together the history of horses is tricky business. There is a considerable amount of controversy when it comes to the taxonomy & lineage of extinct equidae. Be sure to meet some of the others like Mesohippus, Orohippus, Eohippus and Hipparion.