Carnivoramorpha Explained

Carnivoramorpha ("carnivoran-like forms") is a clade of placental mammals of clade Pan-Carnivora from mirorder Ferae, that includes the modern order Carnivora and its extinct stem-relatives.^{[1] [2]}

General characteristics

The common feature for members of this clade is the presence of the carnassial teeth. The carnassial teeth of the Carnivoramorpha are upper premolar P4 and lower molar m1.^[3]

Classification and phylogeny

Traditional classification

• Clade: Carnivoramorpha [Carnivora + all [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] clades to Carnivora, but without Creodonts]
  • Order: Carnivora (carnivorans)
    • Suborder: Caniformia ("dog-like" carnivorans)
    • Suborder: Feliformia ("cat-like" carnivorans)
    • Incertae sedis:
      • Genus: †Palaeogale
  • Superfamily: †Miacoidea
    • • • • • • • Family: †Miacidae Family: †Viverravidae Incertae sedis:
      • †"Sinopa" insectivorus
  • Incertae sedis:
    • Genus: †Ravenictis

Revised classification

Recent phylogenetic studies indicate that the superfamily Miacoidea and family Miacidae are paraphyletic, with "miacids" being more closely related to carnivorans than to viverravids. In 2010 Flynn, Finarelli & Spaulding named a new clade Carnivoraformes within Carnivoramorpha, containing carnivorans and "miacids" but not viverravids.^[4] The authors defined Carnivoraformes as the clade containing Carnivora and all taxa that are more closely related to Carnivora (represented by Canis lupus) than to viverravids (represented by Viverravus gracilis).

• Clade: Carnivoramorpha
  • Clade: Carnivoraformes [= '''Clade "A"''']
    • Genus: †Africtis
    • Genus: †Dawsonicyon
    • Genus: †Miacis
    • (unranked): Clade "B"
      • • • • • Family: †Quercygalidae (unranked): †Gracilocyon/Oodectes clade
        • Genus: †Eogale
        • Genus: †Gracilocyon ^{(paraphyletic genus)}
        • Genus: †Oodectes ^{(paraphyletic genus)}
        • Genus: †Paramiacis
        • Genus: †Paroodectes
        • Incertae sedis:
          • • • • • †"Miacis" sp. [''CM 67873'' & ''CM 77299''] Genus: †Messelogale
      • Genus: †Miocyon
      • Genus: †Simamphicyon
      • Genus: †Uintacyon ^{(paraphyletic genus)}
      • Genus: †Xinyuictis
      • Genus: †Zodiocyon
    • (unranked): Clade "C"
      • Genus: †Dormaalocyon
      • (unranked): †Vulpavus clade
        • Genus: †Palaearctonyx
        • Genus: †Vassacyon
        • Genus: †Vulpavus ^{(paraphyletic genus)}
      • Incertae sedis:
        • †"Miacis" deutschi
        • †"Miacis" exiguus
    • (unranked): Clade "D"
      • Order: Carnivora (carnivorans) [= '''Clade "E"''']
      • Genus: †Ceruttia
      • Genus: †Harpalodon
      • Genus: †Lycarion
      • Genus: †Neovulpavus
      • Genus: †Procynodictis
      • Genus: †Prodaphaenus
      • Genus: †Tapocyon
      • Genus: †Walshius
      • Incertae sedis:
        • †"Miacis" gracilis
        • †"Miacis" hargeri
        • †"Miacis" invictus
        • †"Miacis" lushiensis
    • Incertae sedis:
      • †"Miacis" boqinghensis
      • †"Miacis" hookwayi
      • †"Miacis" latidens
      • †"Miacis" petilus
        • • • • • • • †Carnivoraformes undet. Genus A †Carnivoraformes undet. Genus B ichnotaxa of Carnivoraformes:
      • Ichnogenus: †Falcatipes
  • Superfamily: †Viverravoidea
    • • • Family: †Viverravidae Incertae sedis:
    • Genus: †Ravenictis
    • †"Sinopa" insectivorus

See also

• Mammal classification
• Ferae
• Miacoidea

Further reading

• C. M. Janis, J. A. Baskin, A. Berta, J. J. Flynn, G. F. Gunnell, R. M. Hunt jr., L. D. Martin, and K. Munthe (1998.) "Carnivorous mammals." In C. M. Janis, K. M. Scott, and L. L. Jacobs (eds.) "Evolution of Tertiary Mammals of North America. Volume 1: Terrestrial Carnivores, Ungulates, and Ungulatelike Mammals." Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• K. D. Rose and J. D. Archibold (2005) "The Rise of Placental Mammals: Origins and Relationships of the Major Extant Clades", Baltimore and London, Johns Hopkins University Press
• K. D. Rose and J. D. Archibold (2005) "Womb with a View: the Rise of Placentals." In: K. D. Rose and J. D. Archibold "The Rise of Placental Mammals: Origins and Relationships of the Major Extant Clades", Baltimore and London, Johns Hopkins University Press
• Welsey-Hunt, G. D. . Flynn, J. J. . 2005 . Phylogeny of the Carnivora: basal relationships among the Carnivoramorphans, and assessment of the position of 'Miacoidea' relative to Carnivora . Journal of Systematic Palaeontology . 3 . 1 . 1–28 . 10.1017/S1477201904001518. 86755875 .
• Stiles, David P. (2005) investigation of the Vulpes and Urocyon phylogenetic classification: Feliformia or Caniformia?” Fox Phylogeny. Vertebrate Evolution – Fall 2005, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA.
• Wesley-Hunt . G. D. . Werdelin . L. . 2005 . Basicranial morphology and phylogenetic position of the upper Eocene carnivoramorphan Quercygale . Acta Palaeontologica Polonica . 50 . 4 . 837–846.
• Wesley-Hunt, Gina D. (2005) “The Morphological Diversification of Carnivores in North America.” Paleobiology. Vol. 31, Issue 1, pp. 35–55.
• Benton, Michael J. and Philip C. J. Donoghue (2007) “Paleontological Evidence to Date the Tree of Life.”, Molecular Biology and Evolution, Volume 24, Issue 1, Pages 26–53
• Spaulding . M. . O'Leary . M. A. . Gatesy . J. . 2009 . Relationships of Cetacea (Artiodactyla) Among Mammals: Increased Taxon Sampling Alters Interpretations of Key Fossils and Character Evolution . PLOS ONE . Farke . Andrew Allen . 4 . 9 . 10.1371/journal.pone.0007062 . 2009PLoSO...4.7062S . 19774069 . 2740860 . e7062. free .
• Book: Jackson . S. . Jackson . S. M. . Groves . C. . 2015 . Taxonomy of Australian mammals . Csiro Publishing . 978-1486300136 . 238.
• Susumu Tomiya, Shawn P. Zack, Michelle Spaulding and John J. Flynn (2019.) "Carnivorous mammals from the Middle Eocene Washakie formation, Wyoming, U.S.A., and their diversity trajectory in a post-warming world", in "The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology 79th annual meeting"
• Solé . F. . Fischer . V. . Le Verger . K. . Mennecart . B. . Speijer . R. P. . Peigné . S. . Smith . T. . Evolution of European carnivorous mammal assemblages through the Palaeogene . 2022 . Biological Journal of the Linnean Society . 135 . 4 . 734–753 . 10.1093/biolinnean/blac002.

Notes and References

1. Bryant, H.N., and M. Wolson (2004) “Phylogenetic Nomenclature of Carnivoran Mammals.” First International Phylogenetic Nomenclature Meeting. Paris, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle
2. Solé . Floréal . Smith . Richard . Coillot . Tiphaine . de Bast . Eric . Smith . Thierry . Dental and tarsal anatomy of Miacis latouri and a phylogenetic analysis of the earliest carnivoraforms (Mammalia, Carnivoramorpha) . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology . 34 . 1 . 2014 . 1–21 . 0272-4634 . 10.1080/02724634.2013.793195. 86207013.
3. Floréal Solé & Thierry Smith (2013.) "Dispersals of placental carnivorous mammals (Carnivoramorpha, Oxyaenodonta & Hyaenodontida) near the Paleocene-Eocene boundary: a climatic and almost worldwide story" Geologica Belgica 16/4: 254-261
4. Book: Flynn . John J. . Finarelli . John A. . Spaulding . Michelle . 2010 . Phylogeny of the Carnivora and Carnivoramorpha, and the use of the fossil record to enhance understanding of evolutionary transformations . Goswami . Anjali . Friscia . Anthony . Carnivoran evolution. New views on phylogeny, form and function . Cambridge University Press . 9781139193436 . 10.1017/CBO9781139193436.003 . 25–63.