Adilophontes
| Adilophontes Temporal range: Early Oligocene–Early Miocene | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Suborder: | Caniformia |
| Family: | Amphicyonidae |
| Subfamily: | Daphoeninae |
| Genus: | †Adilophontes Hunt (2002) |
Adilophontes is an extinct genus of large, mostly carnivorous bone-crushing mammals known as bear dogs, of the family Amphicyonidae, endemic to North America during the Oligocene to Miocene, living from 24.8—20.6 Ma and existed for approximately 4.2 million years. [1]
Taxonomy
Adilophontes was named by Hunt (2002). Its type is Adilophontes brachykolos. It was assigned to Daphoeninae by Hunt (2002).
Morphology
A single specimen was examined by Legendre and Roth[2] for body mass and was estimated to weigh 68.6 kg (150 lb).
Fossil distribution
- Eighteen Mile District, Goshen County, Wyoming ~20.8 Ma.
- Lay Ranch Beds, Goshen County, Wyoming ~20.8 Ma.
- Guernsey, Platte County, Wyoming ~20.9 Ma.
References
- ↑ Paleobiology Database: Adilophontes Basic info.
- ↑ S. Legendre and C. Roth. 1988. Correlation of carnassial tooth size and body weight in recent carnivores (Mammalia). Historical Biology 1(1):85-98