Panthera balamoides
In Depth
Species Classification: Carnivora
Machairodus
In Depth While Machairodus possesses enlarged canine fangs they seem to be intermediate between regular sized canines and the larger canines exhibited by other similar cats. These teeth combined with squat proportions and a robust physique has led to speculation that Machairodus’s hunting behaviour was that of an ambush predator. The popular depiction of Machairodus … Read more
Borophagus
In Depth Borophagus is the last of the known line of ‘bone-crunching dogs’ (also known as ‘hyena dogs’) that roamed the plains of North America. Although Borophagus was smaller than its ancestors such as Epicyon, its skull was considerably better adapted to crushing bones. This seems to be a trait of a creature that relied … Read more
Canis armbrusteri (Armbruster’s Wolf)
In Depth Further Reading – Preliminary report on a recently discovered Pleistocene cave deposit near Cumberland, Maryland. – J. W. Gidley – 1913. – Phylogenetic systematics of the North American fossil Caninae (Carnivora, Canidae) – Richard H. Tedford, Xiaoming Wang, Beryl E. Taylor – 2009.
Protemnocyon
In Depth Unfortunately we cannot not bring you too much information about Protemnocyon at this time other than the little that is stated above. The name Protemnocyon is a reference to another species of bear dog called Temnocyon that was active in North America during the Oligocene to Miocene periods. Further Reading – Oligocene Canidae. … Read more
Ictitherium
In Depth With is slender body, proportionately short legs and teeth suited more for an insectivorous diet, Ictitherium was more like a civet. However this predator was actually one of the first hyenas even though it still had a long way to go to developing the immense bone crushing bite of modern hyenas. Ictitherium is … Read more
Ischyrocyon
In Depth Ischyrocyon appears to have been around mid-sized for one of the North American bear dogs being much bigger than some genera such as Temnocyon and Cynelos, but still much smaller than giants like Amphicyon. The type species name I. hyaenodus means ‘hyaena tooth’, a reference to the similarity of the teeth of Ischyrocyon … Read more
Temnocyon
In Depth Although one of the bear dogs, Temnocyon seems to have been more the size of a small wolf. The first remains of Temnocyon came from the John Day fossil beds of Oregon state which are noted for producing a large number of the currently known temnocyonine fossils. The range of Temnocyon currently seems … Read more
Panthera spelaea (European/Eurasian cave lion)
In Depth Further Reading – The Pleistocene cave lion, Panthera spelaea (Carnivora, Felidae) from Yakutia, Russia. – Cranium 18, 7–24. – G. F. Baryshnikov & G. Boeskorov – 2001. – Molecular phylogeny of the extinct cave lion Panthera leo spelaea – Molecular Phylogenetics and EvolutionVolume 30, Issue 3 – Joachim Burgera, Wilfried Rosendahl, Odile Loreillea, … Read more
Hesperocyon
In Depth In overall form and proportions Hesperocyon wasn’t much like a dog as we know them today, but it has still been confirmed to be one of the first canids to appear on the landscape. The key identifying feature is the ear structure within the skull which is enclosed by bone rather than cartiladge. … Read more