Agnotherium

Agnotherium
Temporal range: Late Miocene, 10.8 – 9.7 Ma
Agnotherium antiquum reconstruction, Naturhistorisches Museum Mainz
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Amphicyonidae
Subfamily: Thaumastocyoninae
Genus: Agnotherium
Kaup, 1833
Type species
Agnotherium antiquum
Kaup, 1833
Synonyms
  • Amphicyon agnotus Pomel, 1853
  • Agnocyon pomeli Kaup, 1861
  • Vishnucyon chinjiensis? Pilgrim, 1932

Agnotherium is a genus of large sized carnivoran mammals, belonging to the Amphicyonidae ("bear dogs"), which has been found in Western Europe, and possibly China and Northern Africa, and lived during the Late Miocene epoch. Despite only being known from fragmentary remains, the genus notable for hypercarnivorous adaptions, which have been said to represent the "apex" among its family.