Evolution of South American Mammalian Predators During the Cenozoic: Paleobiogeographic and Paleoenvironmental Contingencies by Francisco J. Prevosti & Analía M. Forasiepi

Author:Francisco J. Prevosti & Analía M. Forasiepi
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Cham

(Fig. 4.7, Tables 4.1 and 4.2)

Fig. 4.7Mounted skeleton of Theriodictis platensis (MPS 2). Scale = 5 cm

Species in South America: Theriodictis platensis Mercerat 1891.

Temporal and geographic distribution: Ensenadan of the Pampean Region (Prevosti 2006b; Prevosti et al. 2009a).

Paleoecology: Theriodictis platensis was one of the largest hypercarnivorous canids from SA (30 kg–50 kg), able to hunt medium- and large-sized mammals (Prevosti and Palmqvist 2001; Prevosti 2006b). The postcranial anatomy suggests that it was cursorial, similar to Lycaon pictus (Temminck 1820) (Prevosti 2006b).

Comments: Tedford et al. (2009) tentatively identified the species Theriodictis? floridanus Wang et al. 1999 from the late Pliocene–early Pleistocene of NA. In a recent phylogenetic analysis, this species was placed as the sister taxon of Protocyon + Theriodictis + Speothos + “Canis” gezi Kraglievich 1928, which may suggest that the origin of this clade was in North America (Prevosti 2010). Unfortunately, Theriodictis? floridanus is only known by an incomplete mandible and isolated teeth and more complete material is needed to evaluate this hypothesis.

“Canis” gezi Kraglievich 1928

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