''Borophagus orc'' is an extinct species of the genus '' Borophagus'' of the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Borophaginae, a group of canids endemic to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

from the 10.3

Mya Mya may refer to: Brands and product names * Mya (program), an intelligent personal assistant created by Motorola * Mya (TV channel), an Italian Television channel * Midwest Young Artists, a comprehensive youth music program Codes * Burmese ...

to 4.9 Mya. ''Borophagus orc'' existed for approximately .

Overview

''Borophagus'', like other Borophaginae, are loosely known as "bone-crushing" or "

hyena Hyenas, or hyaenas (from Ancient Greek , ), are feliform carnivoran mammals of the family Hyaenidae . With only four extant species (each in its own genus), it is the fifth-smallest family in the Carnivora and one of the smallest in the clas ...

-like" dogs. Though not the most massive borophagine by size or weight, it had a more highly evolved capacity to crunch bone than earlier, larger genera such as '' Epicyon'', which seems to be an evolutionary trend of the group (Turner, 2004). During the Pliocene epoch, ''Borophagus'' began being displaced by ''Canis'' genera such as ''

Canis edwardii ''Canis edwardii'', also known as Edward's wolf, is an extinct species of wolf in the genus ''Canis'' which was endemic to North America three million years ago from the Late Blancan stage of the Pliocene epoch and was extinct by the end of the I ...

'' and later by ''

Canis dirus ''Canis'' is a genus of the Caninae which includes multiple extant species, such as wolves, dogs, coyotes, and golden jackals. Species of this genus are distinguished by their moderate to large size, their massive, well-developed skulls and d ...

''. Early species of ''Borophagus'' were placed in the genus ''Osteoborus'' until recently, but the

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

are now considered synonyms. ''Borophagus orc'' possibly led a hyena-like lifestyle scavenging carcasses of recently dead animals.

Taxonomy

Typical features of this genus are a bulging forehead and powerful jaws; it was probably a

scavenger Scavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While scavenging generally refers to carnivores feeding on carrion, it is also a herbivorous feeding b ...

. Its crushing

premolar The premolars, also called premolar teeth, or bicuspids, are transitional teeth located between the canine and molar teeth. In humans, there are two premolars per quadrant in the permanent set of teeth, making eight premolars total in the mouth ...

teeth and strong jaw muscles would have been used to crack open bone, much like the

of the Old World. The adult animal is estimated to have been about in length, similar to a

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

, although it was much more powerfully built.

Recombination

''Borophagus orc'' was recombined by X. Wang in 1999. It was previously named ''Osteoborus orc.''

Fossil distribution

Specimens have been found at only two sites: near Withlacoochee River, Florida and coastal North Carolina.

References

Notes

* Alan Turner, "National Geographic: Prehistoric Mammals" (Washington, D.C.: Firecrest Books Ltd., 2004), pp. 112–114. * Xiaoming Wang,
The Origin and Evolution of the Dog Family
Accessed 1/30/06.