The Amphicyonids, more commonly known as the Bear Dogs, were an early evolving and successful group of Caniform Carnivorans. First appearing in North America during the Middle Eocene roughly 43 million years ago, these animals were the most basal of all Caniforms and were not direct ancestors of either dogs or bears. The oldest forms were small and generalized, resembling modern civets and genets, but quickly developed into superficially dog-like ambush predators. With long heavy tails, relatively short limbs and muscular builds, Amphicyonids were not pursuit hunters but were more similar to modern lions and tigers in stalking and ambushing prey.
Many species were wolf-sized, while the late surviving Amphicyon could reach the size of a large bear and was among the apex predators of Eurasia and North America. Most members of the family were hypercarnivores, with many of the smaller forms dying out by the Middle Miocene. This may have been due to competition with Canids, especially in North America. Amphicyon survived longer, dying out by the Late Pliocene in Pakistan about 2.6 mya. Eventually, the spread of more open grasslands combined with a lack of cursorial adaptations may have doomed these previously successful predators, losing ground to large Felids and Canids.
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