Proteles is a genus of distinctive hyenas which contain the aardwolf (Proteles cristatus) and its close fossil relatives.[1] It is the only extant genus of the subfamily Protelinae.
While the oldest fossils definitely belonging to Proteles date back to the Pliocene, material from the Miocene dating to around 10 million years ago has been suggested to belong to the genus, which would significantly increase its temporal range.[2]
It has been suggested that the Protelinae subfamily may actually be an offshoot of the "running hyenas" (such as Lycyaena) who adapted to an insectivorous diet due to increased competition from canines and felines.[3]
References
- ^ Kingdon, Jonathan (2014). Mammals of Africa: Volume V: Carnivores, Pangolins, Equids and Rhinoceroses. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 282. ISBN 9781408189948.
- ^ Paleontology and Geology of Laetoli: Human Evolution in Context Volume 2: Fossil Hominins and the Associated Fauna. Springer Netherlands. 2011. p. 220. ISBN 9789048199624.
- ^ Koepfli, Klaus-Peter (2006). "Molecular systematics of the Hyaenidae: relationships of a relictual lineage resolved by a molecular supermatrix". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 38 (3): 603–620. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.10.017. PMID 16503281.