Moropus (meaning "slow foot") is an extinct mammal, belonging to a group called chalicotheres, which were perissodactyl ("odd-toed") mammals that include the modern horse, rhino, and tapir. Moropus lived mainly during the Miocene epoch.

Like other chalicotheres, they differed from their modern relatives in having large claws, rather than hooves, on the front feet; these claws may have been used for defense or digging for food. Moropus stood about eight feet tall at the shoulder. The three highly compressed claw-like hooves on each foot were split down the middle. These claws actually gave Moropus its name: " slow "or "sloth foot". This name implies that because of the claws, Moropus was a clumsy mover. But the articulation of the phalangeal (finger) bones, in addition to probable large foot and toe pads, shows that Moropus probably could raise the claws slightly to enable it to move about quite smoothly. Because the hooves curve inward, it probably had a pigeon-toed gait.

Fossils of Moropus have been found in North America.

See also

• Ancylotherium