Craniodental and humeral morphology of a new species of Masrasector (Teratodontinae, Hyaenodonta, Placentalia) from the late Eocene of Egypt and locomotor diversity in hyaenodonts

PLoS One. 2017 Apr 19;12(4):e0173527. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0173527. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

Hyaenodonta is a diverse clade of carnivorous mammals that were part of terrestrial faunas in the Paleogene of Eurasia and North America, but the oldest record for the group is Afro-Arabian, making the record there vital for understanding the evolution of this wide-spread group. Previous studies show an ancient split between two major clades of hyaenodonts that converged in hypercarnivory: Hyainailourinae and Hyaenodontinae. These clades are each supported by cranial characters. Phylogenetic analyses of hyaenodonts also support the monophyly of Teratodontinae, an Afro-Arabian clade of mesocarnivorous to hypercarnivorous hyaenodonts. Unfortunately, the cranial anatomy of teratodontines is poorly known, and aligning the clade with other lineages has been difficult. Here, a new species of the phylogenetically controversial teratodontine Masrasector is described from Locality 41 (latest Priabonian, late Eocene) from the Fayum Depression, Egypt. The hypodigm includes the most complete remains of a Paleogene teratodontine, including largely complete crania, multiple dentaries, and isolated humeri. Standard and "tip-dating" Bayesian analyses of a character-taxon matrix that samples cranial, postcranial, and dental characters support a monophyletic Masrasector within Teratodontinae, which is consistently placed as a close sister group of Hyainailouridae. The cranial morphology of Masrasector provides new support for an expanded Hyainailouroidea (Teratodontinae + Hyainailouridae), particularly characters of the nuchal crest, palate, and basicranium. A discriminant function analysis was performed using measurements of the distal humerus from a diverse sample of extant carnivorans to infer the locomotor habits of Masrasector. Masrasector was assigned to the "terrestrial" locomotor category, a result consistent with the well-defined medial trochlear ridges, and moderately developed supinator crests of the specimens. Masrasector appears to have been a fast-moving terrestrial form with a diverse diet. These specimens considerably improve our understanding of Teratodontinae, an ancient member of the Afro-Arabian mammalian fauna, and our understanding of hyaenodont diversity before the dispersal of Carnivora to the continent near the end of the Paleogene.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bayes Theorem
  • Biological Evolution
  • Egypt
  • Extinction, Biological
  • Fossils
  • Humerus / anatomy & histology*
  • Humerus / physiology
  • Locomotion / physiology
  • Mammals / anatomy & histology*
  • Mammals / classification*
  • Mammals / physiology
  • Paleontology
  • Phylogeny*
  • Predatory Behavior / physiology
  • Skull / anatomy & histology*
  • Skull / physiology
  • Tooth / anatomy & histology*
  • Tooth / physiology

Grants and funding

Field work in the Fayum Depression, Egypt, and digital curation of Fayum fossils is supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation through grants BCS-0416164 (https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0416164), BCS-0819186 (https://nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0819186), and BCS-1231288 (https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1231288), Gordon and Ann Getty, and The Leakey Foundation (https://leakeyfoundation.org/). MRB was supported by a U.S. National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (DEB-1311354; https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1311354&HistoricalAwards=false), a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (https://www.nsfgrfp.org/), a Turkana Basin Institute Graduate Fellowship (http://www.turkanabasin.org/about/fellowships/), and a Stony Brook University Graduate Council Fellowship, and is currently supported by a U.S. National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology (DBI-1612062; https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1612062). Portions of the data acquisition for this study were also supported by grants from The Explorers Club (https://explorers.org/expeditions/funding/expedition_grants) and the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (http://www.sicb.org/grants/fgstinfo.php). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.