Description
Cynodictis lacustris
Late Eocene
Phosphorites de Quercy
Near Cahors, Les Rozieres France.
Complete 1000mm amphicyonid skeleton.
Carnivora.
Cynodictis is a genus of carnivorous mammal considered one of the oldest amphicyonids (Family Amphicyonidae). It is known only from the Late Eocene of Europe and was about the size of a fox.
Amphicyonids are commonly called “bear-dogs,” representing an extinct family of dog-like carnivorans though some later forms (Amphicyon) were larger and bear-like. They were dominant carnivores in the Early Miocene spreading from North America and Europe to Asia and Africa but died out worldwide by the end of the Miocene.