Canis ferox

Canis ferox (Latin: canis: dog, ferox: fierce; hence fierce dog) is a species of canid which was endemic to North America and lived during the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene,[1] existing for approximately 5 million years . The first fossil was found in Rancho Viejo, Guanajuato (Mexico). Researchers estimated that their weight could be between 13.3 kg and 14.3 kg, based on the Legendre and Roth correlations.[2] Paleontologists Miller and Carranza-Castaneda noted that their skull resembled that of an ancestral coyote, Canis lepophagus. However, this species had other characteristics similar to Eucyon davisi, belonging to a different genus of canids. These characteristics suggest that Canis ferox marks the beginning of the cladogenesis of the genus Canis.

Canis ferox
Temporal range: Late Miocene to Early Pliocene, 10.9–5.8 Ma
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Canidae
Genus: Canis
Species:
C. ferox
Binomial name
Canis ferox
Miller and Carranza-Castaneda 1998

References
  1. PaleoBiology Database: Canis ferox
  2. Legendre, S., S.; Roth, C. (1988). Correlation of carnassial tooth size and body weight in recent carnivores (Mammalia). Historical Biology 1. pp. 85–98.CS1 maint: location (link)


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