WWB - Rise of Mammals

Here is the second episode of my own Walking with Beasts, where I run into the dilemma of having only one Eocene setting where the original had two very distinctive ones. Thus I tried to make a Middle Eocene setting that had animals typical for the early Eocene as well as massive mammals typical for the late Eocene. What do you do when the Messel Pit had already been done and you think North America is overused? You go to Asia, of course! This is supposed to be set in Middle Eocene China, 46 million years ago (Lushi Basin), though several of these animals are from Pakistan and Kazakhstan. Some of them don´t even fit right into that age, so this is deliberate anachronism by me to make the cast more diverse.  

Uintatherium insperatus: A 4 meter long herbivore with large tusks and several ossicones on its head. The strange-looking Uintatherium usually gets ignored in Eocene settings because early Eocene settings only feature tiny mammals while late Eocene settings have the much more impressive brontotheres. The fact that there was a Chinese species of Uintatherium is the reason I selected Eocene China over the more well-known Eocene North America. Traced over a skeletal by Scott Hartman, with the skull based on ´s reconstruction: www.deviantart.com/art/Uintath…
Aktautitan hippopotamopus: A 4 meter long brontothere with very short legs, possibly hinting at a semi-aquatic lifestyle. Using the Middle Eocene as your only Eocene setting means you miss out on the iconic brontotheres of the Late Eocene. Early Brontotheres were hornless and only medium-sized. Aktautitan from Kazakhstan is possibly younger than 46 million years, but it´s the earliest massive brontothere known and thus the best available option. Traced over ´s reconstruction: romanyevseyev.deviantart.com/a…
Harpagolestes orientalis: A 2.1 meter long mesonychid that serves as the apex predator of this setting. Because the only representative of Mesonychians in the original WWB turned out to not even belong to that group I wanted to feature some true mesonychians. The only big one that people seem to be aware of is Sarkastodon, which only existed during the Latest Eocene in Mongolia. The big-jawed Harpagolestes is a perfect fit for this time frame, though, and just like Uintatherium it was around both in North America and in China. Traced over ´s reconstruction of Harpagolestes immanis: www.deviantart.com/art/Harpago…
Tillodont: A 1.2 meter long mammal that uses its claws and large incisors to dig out and eat roots. Tillodonts are yet another oddball mammal family that didn´t survive past the Eocene, but they are much more obscure than dinoceratans and brontotheres. This particular animal is from the Lushi Basin like Uintatherium insperatus and belongs to the genus Chungchienia, but since that animal has barely over 200 Google results, I will just call it an indeterminate tillodont. Traced over the Trogosus reconstruction in "The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals".
Diacodexis pakistanensis: A 50 centimeter long herbivore that serves as a small prey animal on the bottom of the food chain. unlike the bigger and weirder mammals the lineages of this artiodactyl continue till today. This animal was widespread in North America, Europe, India and Pakistan, so I don´t see why it couldn´t have been around in China, too. Traced over the Diacodexis reconstruction in "The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals".
Eosimias sinensis: A 15 cm long early primate that might be the earliest simian. Because it´s a hint at our own ancestry I think an early primate needs to be featured as soon as possible in a Cenozoic documentary. Obviously there were no primates in Paleocene South America, and not using Messel or North America meant I missed out on the most well-known ones. Eosimias is the closest to a Chinese representative I could find, though it´s actually slightly younger than 46 million years. Traced over this reconstruction: www.niu.edu/pubaffairs/RELEASE…
Mesonyx uqbulakensis: A 1.5 meter long mesonychian that serves as a hunter of small prey. Based on its name Mesonyx is the quintessential mesonychian and is another Middle Eocene mammal known from both North America and China. Traced over ´s reconstruction of Mesonyx obtusidens: www.deviantart.com/art/Mesonyx…
Maiacetus inuus: A 2.6 meter long protocetid whale that feeds on fish and small mammals. The evolutionary significant whales of Pakistan are the major reason I did not want to feature North America and Messel, and Pakistan is closer to China than to Germany anyway. Usually people pick the more famous Ambulocetus for this part, but Maiacetus gets bonus points for showing how these mammals birthed their young. Frustratingly its age is 47.5 million years, but maybe you can tolerate a wiggle room of 1.5 million years. Traced over the Maiacetus skeletal at Wikipedia.
Pristichampsus birjukovi: A 3 meter long terrestrial crocodile that serves as a hunter of medium-sized prey. Pristichampsus is known from North America, Europe and Kazakhstan, so again I can only hope that China is close enough for the Kazakhstan species. Traced over the Pristichampsus reconstruction in "The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals".
Gastornis xichuanensis: A 2 meter tall herbivorous bird, possibly an anseriform. This Chinese Gastornis species used to be classified as its own genus, Zhongyuanus. Gastornis used to be interpreted as a predator, but calcium isotope analyses plus the lack of a hooked beak or talons suggests this was a true herbivore. If anyone is unhappy with that, the same studies reinforced the carnivorous nature of phorusrhacids, so terror birds still deserve their name. Traced over ´s reconstruction: www.deviantart.com/art/Gastorn…