Pachyaena

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Pachyaena
Temporal range: Paleocene–Early Eocene
P. gigantea jaws
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Mesonychia
Family: Mesonychidae
Genus: Pachyaena
Species
  • P. gigantea
  • P. intermedia
  • P. ossifraga
  • P. gracilis

Pachyaena (literally, "Thick Hyena") was a genus of heavily built, relatively short-legged mesonychids that originated from Asia. The species ranged in size from a coyote to a bear. During the height of their influence, the species of Pachyaena, similar to those of Dissacus before them, ranged from Asia to North America.

Size varied depending on the species: For P. gracilis, the body mass estimated based in femur length is 24.0 kg, for P. ossifraga is about 56.9 kg, and for the large P. gigantea is 81.7 kg.[1][2] However weight estimations of P. gigantea vary from 129 to 396 kg.[3]

Species

  • Genus Pachyaena
    • Pachyaena gigantea
    • Pachyaena intermedia
    • Pachyaena ossifraga
    • Pachyaena gracilis

References

  1. ↑ http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=basicTaxonInfo&taxon_no=49575
  2. ↑ http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=basicTaxonInfo&taxon_no=49572
  3. ↑ J. Sargis, Eric (2009) Mammalian Evolutionary Morphology: A Tribute to Frederick S. Szalay p.130

External links

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