Amphicynodontidae | |
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Artist's restoration of Kolponomos newportensis. | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Carnivora |
Clade: | Pan-Pinnipedia |
Family: | †Amphicynodontidae Simpson, 1945 |
Genera | |
Amphicynodontidae is a probable clade of extinct arctoids. While some researchers consider this group to be an extinct subfamily of bears,[1] a variety of morphological evidence links amphicynodontines with pinnipeds, as the group were semi-aquatic otter-like mammals.[2][3][4] In addition to the support of the pinniped–amphicynodontine clade, other morphological and some molecular analyses support bears being the closest living relatives to pinnipeds.[5][6][7][3][8][4] According to McKenna and Bell (1997) Amphicynodontinae are classified as stem-pinnipeds in the superfamily Phocoidea.[9] Fossils of these mammals have been found in Europe, North America and Asia.[4] Amphicynodontines should not be confused with Amphicyonids (bear-dogs), a separate family of Carnivora which is a sister clade to arctoids within the caniforms, but which may be listed as a clade of extinct arctoids in older publications.
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