Hyaenodon fossil map
Where fossils of Hyaenodon have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 30 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 30 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Early mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 56–11.63 million years ago (Ypresian to Serravallian) |
| Periods | Paleogene, Neogene |
| Family | Hyaenodontidae |
| Named by | Laizer and Parieu 1838 |
| Fossil records | 350 occurrences at 90 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States, Mongolia, France, China, Canada, United Kingdom, Kenya, Georgia, Switzerland, Germany … |
| Rock formations | txn:40903, Brule, Ergilin Dzo, Chadron, Hsanda Gol, White River |
About Hyaenodon
Hyaenodon ("hyena-tooth") is an extinct genus of carnivorous placental mammals from the tribe Hyaenodontini, part of the subfamily Hyaenodontinae (which is within the family Hyaenodontidae), that belonged to the now extinct order Hyaenodonta. The genus was found lived in Eurasia and North America from the Middle Eocene to the Late Miocene, from 38 to 11.4 million years ago, existing for 26.6 million years. Hyaenodon was thought to have evolved in Asia, probably evolving from Propterodon.
The genus currently consists of at least 40 species, although due to sexual dimorphism and intraspecific variation, there were likely fewer species within the genus. The species within the genus ranged in size from H. lingaoensis to H. gigas and H. mongoliensis, which were estimated to be similar in size to Hyainailouros.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Hyaenodon (revision 1381307524), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q131465.
