Didymictis
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Didymictis Temporal range: 58.7–40.4 Ma |
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|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| (unranked): | Carnivoramorpha |
| Superfamily: | †Miacoidea |
| Family: | †Viverravidae |
| Genus: |
†Didymictis Cope 1875 |
| Species | |
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†D. altidens |
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†D. altidens
Cope 1880a
†D. leptomylus
Cope 1880b
†D. protenus (type)
Cope 1874
†D. proteus
Polly 1997
†D. vancleveae
Robinson 1966
Didymictis is an extinct genus of carnivorous mammals known from the late Paleocene and early Eocene (Tiffanian-GardnerbutteanNALMA) of North America. This genus in the family Viverravidae contains five species.
Didymictis is the only viverravid for which there are considerable postcranial remains. The genus was primarily terrestrial but at least partly cursorial, similar to a civet.
Didymictis has an elongated and relatively large skull with small and low braincase and a long and narrow basicranial region. The occipital and saggital crests are very high. The limbs are of moderate length with subdigitigrade and five-toed feet. The dentition (3.1.4.23.1.4.2) contrast those of miacids by the sharp differentiation between sectorial and tubercular dentition, the loss of the last molar and an elongated second molar, similar to the dentition in bears and raccoons.
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