Oryctoantiquus Ratcliffe and Smith

Ratcliffe, Brett C., Smith, Dena M. & Erwin, Diane, 2005, Oryctoantiquus borealis, New Genus And Species From The Eocene Of Oregon, U. S. A., The World’ S Oldest Fossil Dynastine And Largest Fossil Scarabaeid (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae), The Coleopterists Bulletin 59 (1), pp. 127-135 : 128-129

Oryctoantiquus Ratcliffe and Smith , new genus

Type Species. Oryctoantiquus borealis Ratcliffe and Smith.

Diagnosis. The same as for the monotypic species, Oryctoantiquus borealis . The pattern of punctures on the metasternum, combined with the large body size and form of the posterior legs, distinguishes Oryctoantiquus from other genera in the tribe Oryctini .

Etymology. The generic name is derived from the Greek oryktes, meaning digger (also the stem of the dynastine tribal name Oryctini ), and the Latin antiquus, meaning old; hence the ‘‘old digger’’ or ‘‘old oryctine’’ in reference to the 45 million year old age of the fossil and the tribe to which we assign it.