Cynodesmus: Difference between revisions
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<!-- Species: ''Osbornodon iamonensis''. Syn species: (''Cynodesmus nobilis'', ''Paradaphoenus tropicalis)'', ''Osbornodon renjiei,'' ''Osbornodon scitulus,'' ''Osbornodon sesnoni,'' ''Osbornodon wangi).''<ref>[http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=49463 Osbornodon iamonensis (see genus ''Osbornodon'')]</ref> this is about Osbornodon, so its been moved there--> |
<!-- Species: ''Osbornodon iamonensis''. Syn species: (''Cynodesmus nobilis'', ''Paradaphoenus tropicalis)'', ''Osbornodon renjiei,'' ''Osbornodon scitulus,'' ''Osbornodon sesnoni,'' ''Osbornodon wangi).''<ref>[http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=49463 Osbornodon iamonensis (see genus ''Osbornodon'')]</ref> this is about Osbornodon, so its been moved there--> |
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Studies using the old conception of ''Cynodesmus'' considered it to be the ancestor of ''[[Tomarctus]]'' (16-23 Ma) from which [[wolf|wolves]], [[dog]]s, [[fox]]es and [[fennec]]s developed. The ''Cynodesmus'' is a good example of [[convergent evolution]] because of other species such as the [[Borophagus]], the largest and most dominant canids of this [[Pliocene]] epoch, both of which evolved from it.<ref>[http://bss.sfsu.edu/holzman/courses/Fall01%20projects/coyote.htm North American Coyote]</ref> |
Studies using the old conception of ''Cynodesmus'' considered it to be the ancestor of ''[[Tomarctus]]'' (16-23 Ma) from which [[wolf|wolves]], [[dog]]s, [[fox]]es and [[fennec]]s developed. The ''Cynodesmus'' is a good example of [[convergent evolution]] because of other species such as the ''[[Borophagus]]'', the largest and most dominant canids of this [[Pliocene]] epoch, both of which evolved from it.<ref>[http://bss.sfsu.edu/holzman/courses/Fall01%20projects/coyote.htm North American Coyote]</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 16:30, 21 January 2008
| Cynodesmus | |
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| Genus: | †Cynodesmus Scott, 1895
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| Type species | |
| †Cynodesmus thooides | |
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Cynodesmus is an extinct genus of canine which inhabited North America 34 Mya to 25 Mya (Wang, 1994).
The 1 m (3 ft 4 in) long creature was one of the first canids to truly look dog-like. It probably looked like the modern coyote, but had a shorter skull, heavier tail and longer rump. Also, Cynodesmus was not a very good runner compared to most other canids; it probably attacked prey from an ambush. Like felids, it could (partially) retract its claws.
Taxonomy
Cynodesmus once included numerous species of Oligocene and Miocene canid with highly carnivorous (hypercarnivorous) dentitions. A revision of the genus by Wang (1994) indicates that most species previously placed in Cynodesmus are unrelated to the type species, C. thooides. These other species have been placed the genera Carpocyon, Desmocyon, Leptocyon, Metatomarctus, Osbornodon, Otarocyon, Paracynarctus, Paratomarctus, and Phlaocyon (Wang, 1994; Wang et al., 1999). Of these, only Osbornodon belongs in the same subfamily as Cynodesmus, Hesperocyoninae. The remaining genera are placed in the subfamilies Borophaginae and Caninae.
With unrelated species removed, Cynodesmus is currently restricted to the type species and the closely related C. martini (Wang, 1994).
Studies using the old conception of Cynodesmus considered it to be the ancestor of Tomarctus (16-23 Ma) from which wolves, dogs, foxes and fennecs developed. The Cynodesmus is a good example of convergent evolution because of other species such as the Borophagus, the largest and most dominant canids of this Pliocene epoch, both of which evolved from it.[1]
References
- Wang, X. 1994. Phylogenetic systematics of the Hesperocyoninae (Carnivora, Canidae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 221:1-207.
- Wang, X., R.H. Tedford, and B.E. Taylor. 1999. Phylogenetic systematics of the Borophaginae (Carnivora, Canidae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 243:1-391.
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