Name: Daphoenus.
Phonetic: Da-foe-nus.
Named By: Joseph Liedy - 1853.
Synonyms: Daphoenus demilo, Pericyon,
Proamphicyon nebrascensis, Protemnocyon hartshornianus.
Classification: Chordata, Mammalia, Carnivora,
Caniformia, Amphicyonidae, Daphoeninae.
Species: D. vetus (type),
D.
hartshorianus, D. ambei, D. ruber, D. socialis, D.
transversus.
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: Up to 1.5 meters long, but exact size
depends upon the species with some being smaller.
Known locations: Canada, USA.
Time period: Lutetian of the Eocene through to
Burdigalian of the Miocene.
Fossil representation: Multiple specimens.
Although
no way near as popular as the large ‘bear
dogs’ such as Amphicyon,
the large number of fossil remains for Daphoenus
actually make it one
of if not the best represented of the North American bear dogs.
Daphoenus is actually the type genus of a special
sub group of
amphicyonids called the Daphoeninae, a group of bear dogs that is so
far only known from North America.
Like
with other bear dogs, Daphoenus was a dog-like
animal that also
exhibited bear like features and characteristics. One such feature
are the plantigrade feet which mean that Daphoenus
would have walked
with the metatarsals in contact with the ground, giving Daphoenus
a
low walking ‘flat-footed’ appearance. Later more advanced forms
would develop to walk on their toes so that the metatarsal bones would
effectively extend the length of the legs. Plantigrade posture seems
to have been a trait of more primitive mammals since it is seen in some
other groups such as the nimravids.
Daphoenus
skulls display a
strongly developed sagittal crest (a ridge that runs along the back
of the skull for the attachment of jaw closing muscles) which is
thought to have allowed for considerably more powerful jaw muscles
which in turn mean that Daphoenus had a very
powerful bite.
As
a genus Daphoenus had a geographic distribution
that covered most of
the western/central United States and much of Canada, although when
the genus can be broken down into specific species a different picture
emerges. D. vetus and D.
hartshorianus are known from the central
US, D. lambei ranged between central southern
Canada and Texas,
D. ruber from California and D.
socialis from Oregon. Without
other discoveries to indicate different, this all comes together to
indicate that not all species were active in the same times and
locations as one another, although some cross over between species
is possible to likely depending upon the species in question.
The
type species D. vetus is usually credited as
being the largest while
others, particularly earlier species like D. lambei
and D. ruber
are smaller. One rival to D. vetus in terms of
size is D.
socialis which was one of the last species to live during
the Miocene.
Further reading
- Additions to the Mammalian Fauna From the Tecuya Beds, California. -
Carnegie Institution of Washington Publication 418(4):87-92. - C. Stock
- 1932.
- A systematic revision of Daphoenus and some
allied genera. - Journal
of Paleontology 22(5):573-600. - J. R. Hough - 1948.
- New amphicyonid carnivorans (Mammalia, Daphoeninae) from the early
Miocene of southeastern Wyoming. - American Museum Novitates 3385:1-41.
- R. M. Hunt - 2002.