Animalia > Chordata > Mammalia > Carnivora > Canidae > Cynodesmus

Cynodesmus

Synonyms: Desmatocyon

Wikipedia Abstract

Cynodesmus is an extinct genus of omnivorous canine which inhabited North America during the Oligocene living from 33.3—-26.3 Ma and existed for approximately 7 million years. Cynodesmus was one of the first canids to truly look dog-like. At around 1 metre (3.3 ft) in length, it was about the same size as a modern coyote, but had a shorter skull, heavier tail, and longer rump. The shape of its limbs suggests that Cynodesmus was not a very good runner compared to most other canids; it probably attacked prey from an ambush. Unlike modern dogs, it had five toes on each foot, bearing partially retractable claws.
View Wikipedia Record: Cynodesmus

Species

External References

Species taxanomy provided by GBIF Secretariat (2022). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-06-13; License: CC BY 4.0