In Depth Every now and then in palaeontology an animal comes along that just doesn’t seem like it should have existed at all. Macrauchenia is one such individual creature due to a very bizarre mix body features that have ended up in a mix-match of different creature parts. To begin first imagine a four legged … Read more
In Depth Further Reading - Pliocene Bovidae (Mammalia) from the Hadar Formation of Hadar and Ledi-Geraru, Lower Awash, Ethiopia, Denis Geraads, Ren� Bobe & Kaye Reed - 2012.
In Depth Chalicotherium is the type genus of the Chalicotheriidae, strange herbivores that look like hybrids between horses and ground sloths. The horse comparison comes from the shape of the head that is similar in form and proportion to that of a horse, while the body is supported upon two long front limbs and two … Read more
In Depth Jeholodens was a small triconodont mammal that lived in China during the early Cretaceous. Triconodont mammals like Jeholodens are so named because they have three cusps on the crowns of their teeth. Jeholodens is noted for having bone developments that were fairly advance for mammals during its time of the early Cretaceous. Some … Read more
In Depth Along with the type genus Borophagus, Aelurodon is one of the better known of the so called ‘bone crushing dogs’ of the Borophaginae. Canids like Aelurodon got their nickname from the form of their short snouts which have also been described as hyena-like. Because of their shortness, the snout force food towards the … Read more
In Depth Dawsonicyon is a genus of carnivoramorph that lived in North America during the early Eocene. Further Reading - A new basal Carnivoramorphan (Mammalia) from the ‘Bridger B’ (Black’s Fork member, Bridger Formation, Bridgerian Nalma, middle Eocene) of Wyoming, USA. - Palaeontology 53(4):815-832 - M. Spaulding, J. J. Flynn & R. K. Stucky - … Read more
In Depth Further Reading Further reading- Late Tertiary Canids from Central Mexico. – Journal of Paleontology 72(3):546-556. – W. E. Miller & O. Carranza-Castaneda – 1998.
In Depth Although still only known from a few scattered and incomplete fossils, Dissopsalis stands out from other creodonts by being one of the last to live. The earliest species was D. pyroclasticus from Kenya, but it is the type species of D. carnifex from Asia that confirms is position as a late surviving creodont. … Read more
In Depth Further Reading – A contribution to the vertebrate paleontology of Texas. – Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 30(137):123-131 – E. D. Cope – 1892.892. - A new Pliocene horse from Idaho, James W. Gidley - 1930
In Depth Fist named in 1850, Archaeotherium remains one of the best represented entelodonts in the fossil record. Archaeotherium is one of the earlier entelodonts and lived in North America at a time when the landscape was occupied by primitive horses, camels and rhinos and the only real predatory competition it faced were creodonts like … Read more