Project 3677: S. Tomiya. 2011. A New Basal Caniform (Mammalia: Carnivora) from the Middle Eocene of North America and Remarks on the Phylogeny of Early Carnivorans. PLOS ONE. 6 (9):e24146.
Abstract
BackgroundDespite a long history of research, the phylogenetic origin and initial diversification of the mammalian crown-group Carnivora remain elusive. Well-preserved fossil materials of basal carnivorans are essential for resolving these issues, and for constraining the timing of the carnivoran origin, which constitutes an important time-calibration point in mammalian phylogenetics.Methodology/Principal FindingsA new carnivoramorphan from the middle Eocene of southern California, Lycophocyon hutchisoni, is described. The new taxon exhibits stages of dental and basicranial evolution that are intermediate between earlier carnivoramorphans and the earliest representatives of canoid carnivorans. The evolutionary affinity of the new taxon was determined by a cladistic analysis of previously-published and newly-acquired morphological data for 30 Paleogene carnivoramorphans. The most-parsimonious trees identified L. hutchisoni as a basal caniform carnivoran, and placed (1) Tapocyon robustus, Quercygale angustidens, “Miacis” sylvestris, “M.” uintensis, and “M.” gracilis inside or outside the Carnivora, (2) nimravids within the Feliformia, and (3) the amphicyonid Daphoenus outside the crown-group Canoidea. Parsimony reconstructions of ancestral character states suggest that loss of the upper third molars and development of well-ossified entotympanics that are firmly fused to the basicranium (neither condition is observed in L. hutchisoni) are not associated with the origin of the Carnivora as traditionally thought, but instead occurred independently in the Caniformia and the Feliformia. A discriminant analysis of the estimated body weight and dental ecomorphology predicted a mesocarnivorous diet for L. hutchisoni, and the postcranial morphology suggests a scansorial habit.
Conclusions/SignificanceLycophocyon hutchisoni illuminates the morphological evolution of early caniforms leading to the origin of crown-group canoids. Considerable uncertainty remains with respect to the phylogenetic origin of the Carnivora. The minimum date of caniform-feliform divergence is provisionally suggested to be either 47 million years ago or 38 million years ago, depending on the position of “Miacis” sylvestris within or outside the Carnivora, respectively.
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Article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0024146
Project DOI: 10.7934/P3677, http://dx.doi.org/10.7934/P3677
This project contains | Matrices |
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Download Project SDD File | Total scored cells: 3922 Total media associated with cells: 0 Total labels associated with cell media: 0 |
Characters | |
Total characters: 98 Total characters with associated media: 0 Total characters with media with labels: 0 Total character states: 239 Total character states with associated media: 0 Total character states with media with labels:0 Total unordered/ordered characters:97/1 |
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MorphoBank Project 3677
MorphoBank Project 3677
- Creation Date:
26 March 2020 - Publication Date:
10 August 2022 - Project views: 5650
- Matrix downloads: 6
This research
supported by
Authors' Institutions
- University of California Berkeley
Members
member name | taxa | specimens | media | chars | character
| cell scorings (scored, NPA, "-") | cell
| rules | ||||||
MorphoBank Curator Project Administrator | 50 | 1 | 1 | 98 | 0 | 0 | 3922 (3922, 0, 0) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Taxonomic Overview for Matrix 'M26541' (50 Taxa)
taxon | unscored cells |
scored cells |
no cell support |
NPA cells |
"-" cells | cell images | labels on cell images |
member access |
[1] † Lepticitis dakotensis Last Modified in 03/26/20 | 22 | 76 | 76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[2] Ailurus fulgens Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 2 | 96 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[3] † Amphicticeps shackelfordi Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 38 | 60 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[4] † Broiliana nobilis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 30 | 68 | 68 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[5] Canis latrans Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 1 | 97 | 97 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[6] Civettictis spp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 2 | 96 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[7] † Daphoenus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 17 | 81 | 81 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[8] † Dawsonicyon isami Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 58 | 40 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[9] † Didymictis vancleveae Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 28 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[10] † Dinictis felina Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 18 | 80 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[11] Echinosorex gymnura Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 13 | 85 | 85 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[12] Erinaceus concolor Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 13 | 85 | 85 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[13] Felis composite Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 2 | 96 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[14] Gulo gulo Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 1 | 97 | 97 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[15] Herpestes spp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 2 | 96 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[16] † Herpestides antiquus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 18 | 80 | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[17] † Hesperocyon gregarious Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 14 | 84 | 84 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[18] † Hoplophoneus sp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 20 | 78 | 78 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[19] Hyaenid Last Modified in 03/26/20 | 3 | 95 | 95 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[20] † Hyaenodon horridus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 21 | 77 | 77 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[21] † Lycophocyon hutchisoni Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 27 | 71 | 71 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[22] Mephitis spp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 3 | 95 | 95 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[23] † Miacis sylvestris Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 25 | 73 | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[24] † Gustafsonia cognitus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 23 | 75 | 75 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[25] † Miacis gracilis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 26 | 72 | 72 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[26] † Miacis parvivorus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 30 | 68 | 68 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[27] † Miacis uintensis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 42 | 56 | 56 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[28] † Mustelavus priscus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 41 | 57 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[29] Nandinia binotata Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 0 | 98 | 98 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[30] † Oodectes herpestoides Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 15 | 83 | 83 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[31] Otariidae Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 28 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[32] † Otarocyon macdonaldi Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 41 | 57 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[33] † Palaeoprionodon lamandini Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 32 | 66 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[34] † Plesictis genettoides Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 28 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[35] † Proailurus lemanensis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 22 | 76 | 76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[36] Procyon lotor Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 1 | 97 | 97 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[37] † Pseudobassaris riggsi Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 29 | 69 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[38] † Pteronarctos goedertae Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 23 | 75 | 75 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[39] † Quercygale angustidens Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 20 | 78 | 78 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[40] † Viretictis julieni Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 22 | 76 | 76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[41] † Tapocyon robustus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 22 | 76 | 76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[42] † Thinocyon sp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 5 | 93 | 93 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[43] Ursus sp Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 2 | 96 | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[44] † Viverravus acutus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 20 | 78 | 78 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[45] † Viverravus gracilis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 29 | 69 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[46] † Viverravus minutus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 28 | 70 | 70 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[47] † Viverravus politus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 23 | 75 | 75 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[48] † Vulpavus ovatus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 17 | 81 | 81 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[49] † Vulpavus profectus Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 17 | 81 | 81 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
[50] † Zodiolestes daimonelixensis Last Modified in 04/12/22 | 14 | 84 | 84 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Project views
type | number of views | Individual items viewed (where applicable) |
Total project views | 5650 | |
Project overview | 429 | |
Matrix views | 261 | Matrix landing page (240 views); Data matrix (21 views); |
Documents list | 233 | |
Media views | 971 | Media search (816 views); M687142 (155 views); |
Specimen list | 536 | |
Views for media list | 303 | |
Bibliography | 195 | |
Taxon list | 2722 |
Project downloads
type | number of downloads | Individual items downloaded (where applicable) |
Total downloads from project | 10 | |
Project downloads | 4 | |
Matrix downloads | 6 | Data matrix (6 downloads); |