Raoellidae
| Raoellidae Temporal range:
Early Eocene – Middle Eocene | |
|---|---|
| Indohyus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Suborder: | Whippomorpha |
| Clade: | Cetaceamorpha |
| Family: | †Raoellidae Sahni, Bal Bhatia, Hartenberger, Jaeger, Kumar, Sudre & Vianey-Liaud, 1981 |
| Genera | |
Raoellidae, previously grouped within Helohyidae, are an extinct family of semiaquatic digitigrade artiodactyls in the clade Whippomorpha. Fossils of Raoellids are found in Eocene strata of South Asia and Southeast Asia.
An exceptionally complete skeleton of Indohyus, the best preserved Raoellid, from Kashmir suggests that Raoellids are the "missing link" sister group to whales (Cetacea). All other Artiodactyla are relatives of these two groups. δO18 values and osteosclerotic bones indicate that the raccoon-like Indohyus was habitually aquatic. However, it is still unclear if Indohyus primarily fed on land or in water. It is hypothesized that cetaceans evolved from ancestors similar to Raoellids and later fully adapted to aquatic life.