Myacyon

Not to be confused with Maocyon or Miocyon.

Myacyon
Temporal range: Middle to Late Miocene, 14.5–9 Ma Possible Messinian record
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: †Amphicyonidae
Genus: †Myacyon
Sudre and Hartenberger, 1992
Type species
†Myacyon dojambir
Sudre and Hartenberger, 1992
Other species
  • Myacyon kiptalami Morales and Pickford, 2005
  • ?Myacyon peignei Werdelin, 2019
Synonyms
  • Agnotherium kiptalami Morales and Pickford, 2005

Myacyon is an extinct genus of large sized carnivoran mammals, belonging to the family Amphicyonidae (“bear dogs”), that lived in Africa during the Miocene epoch. Due to the limited scope and fragmentary nature of the severely damaged holotype, as well as the illustrations in its descriptions, which have been called inadequate, usage of this genus poses serious issues.[1][2] However, it is notable for being one of the last surviving members of its family and its adaptions to hypercarnivory.[3] Its relationships to other amphicyonids are obscure, and it is not closely related to Bonisicyon, the other late surviving African genus, although it has been proposed that it descends from a species of Cynelos[4] or Namibiocyon.[5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Morales, Jorge; Pickford, M.; Valenciano, Alberto (2016). "Systematics of African Amphicyonidae, with descriptions of new material from Napak (Uganda) and Grillental (Namibia)". Journal of Iberian Geology. doi:10.13039/501100003329. hdl:10261/137042. ISSN 1698-6180.
  3. ^ Morlo, Michael; Miller, Ellen R.; Bastl, Katharina; Abdelgawad, Mohamed K.; Hamdan, Mohammed; El-Barkooky, Ahmed N.; Nagel, Doris (2019). "New Amphicyonids (Mammalia, Carnivora) from Moghra, Early Miocene, Egypt". Geodiversitas. 41 (1): 731–745. doi:10.5252/geodiversitas2019v41a21. ISSN 1280-9659. S2CID 208284245.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).