Pachycrocuta fossil map
Where fossils of Pachycrocuta have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 0 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 0 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 | 11.63–0.0117 million years ago (Tortonian to Late Pleistocene) |
| Periods | Neogene, Quaternary |
| Family | Hyaenidae |
| Named by | Kretzoi 1938 |
| Fossil records | 128 occurrences at 56 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | China, Italy, Greece, Spain, France, Germany, Indonesia, Kenya, South Africa, Tajikistan … |
| Rock formations | txn:41020, Gerakarou, Yuanmou, Hadar, Chemeron, Lukeino |
About Pachycrocuta
Pachycrocuta is an extinct genus of hyena. The largest and most well-researched species is Pachycrocuta brevirostris, colloquially known as the giant short-faced hyena as it stood about 90–100 cm (35–39 in) at the shoulder and it is estimated to have averaged 110 kg (240 lb) in weight, approaching the size of a lioness, making it the largest known undisputed hyena, only exceeded in size by the possible hyena Dinocrocuta. It is often hypothesised to have been a specialised kleptoparasitic scavenger, using its imposing size to force other predators off of carcasses, though some authors have suggested they may have been effective pack hunters like living spotted hyenas.
The precise time of the origin of the genus depends on what species are included, though the only unquestioned species of the genus, P. brevirostris, had emerged by the Early Pleistocene (around 2.6-2 million years ago). Around 800,000 years ago at the end of the Early Pleistocene, it became locally extinct in Europe, with it surviving in East Asia until at least 500,000 years ago, and possibly later elsewhere in Asia. A number of causal factors for the extinction of P. brevirostris have been proposed, including climatic changes and the extinction of the contemporaneous saber-tooth cat Megantereon.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Pachycrocuta (revision 1379387370), 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: Q135094.
