Prolimnocyon
Extinct family of mammals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prolimnocyon ("before Limnocyon") is an extinct paraphyletic genus of limnocyonin hyaenodonts that lived in Asia and North America during the Late Paleocene to Middle Eocene.[7] Prolimnocyon chowi is one of the earliest known member of the order Hyaenodonta and clade Limnocyoninae.[8]
| Prolimnocyon | |
|---|---|
| lower jaw of Prolimnocyon antiquus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | †Hyaenodonta |
| Clade: | †Limnocyoninae |
| Genus: | †Prolimnocyon Matthew, 1915 |
| Type species | |
| †Prolimnocyon atavus Matthew, 1915 | |
| Species | |
| Synonyms | |
|
synonyms of species:
| |
Palaeobiology
Locomotion
Prolimnocyon atavus was well adapted for scansorial locomotion. Its hindlimbs contained adaptations such as a cuboid was characterised by a helical proximal cuboid facet, a talus possessing a flattened talar trochlea with a high lateral rim, and a medially projecting lesser trochanter on its femur. On its forelimbs, its humerus had a prominent deltopectoral crest and a reduced greater tubercle, while its radius possessed an ovoid radial head, and its ulna had a radial notch that was oriented laterally. The species also possessed ungual phalanges that were laterally compressed and moderately deep.[9]