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Enhydriodon
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Enhydriodon

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Enhydriodon is an extinct genus of otters known from Africa and South Asia that lived from the late Miocene to the early Pleistocene. It contains nine confirmed species, two debated species, and at least a few other undescribed species from Africa. The genus name means "otter tooth" in Ancient Greek and is a reference to its dentition rather than to the Enhydra genus, which includes the modern sea otter and its two prehistoric relatives. Enhydriodon belongs to the tribe Enhydriodontini (which also contains Sivaonyx and Vishnuonyx) in the otter subfamily Lutrinae.

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Encyclopedic overview

16 sections
Contents
  • Taxonomy
  • Early history
  • Perceived relationships with ''Paludolutra'' and ''Enhydra''
  • Modern revisions of African species
  • Classification
  • Description
  • Skull
  • Dentition
  • Limbs
  • Body Mass
  • Palaeobiology
  • Palaeoecology
  • Pakistan and India
  • Ethiopia
  • Notes
  • References

Enhydriodon is an extinct genus of otters known from Africa and South Asia that lived from the late Miocene to the early Pleistocene. It contains nine confirmed species, two debated species, and at least a few other undescribed species from Africa. The genus name means "otter tooth" in Ancient Greek and is a reference to its dentition rather than to the Enhydra genus, which includes the modern sea otter and its two prehistoric relatives. Enhydriodon belongs to the tribe Enhydriodontini (which also contains Sivaonyx and Vishnuonyx) in the otter subfamily Lutrinae.

The exact sizes and lengths of Enhydriodon species are unknown given the lack of complete fossils of it and most related fossil lutrines. Indian subcontinental species are estimated to be of weights similar to that of the extant sea otter, but African species are estimated to be heavier than extant lutrines. In particular, several species such as E. kamuhangirei, E. dikikae, and E. omoensis were estimated to weigh over . Given these weight estimates, the three species likely reached sizes comparable to extant bears or lions, making them the largest known mustelids to exist, although a lack of complete specimens makes precise estimates impossible.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Enhydriodon” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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