Desmatophocidae Temporal range: Early to Late
Miocene
| |
---|---|
Skeleton of Allodesmus sp. at the National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo, Japan | |
Holotype skeleton of Atopotarus courseni at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Carnivora |
Clade: | Pinnipedia |
Superfamily: | Otarioidea |
Family: | † Desmatophocidae |
Genera | |
Desmatophocidae is an extinct family of pinnipeds closely related to the eared seals and walruses. [1] These animals were the first group of large-bodied pinnipeds to evolve, first appearing in the Early Miocene, with no direct modern descendants. [2] Desmatophocids have only been found to live in the North Pacific, with fossils being found in Baja California, California, Oregon, Washington, and Japan. [3]
The group is generally known for having large orbits, bulbous cheek teeth, and forelimbs similar to extant eared seals. [2]