78 The Badland Formations of the Black Hills Region 



its inferior border. The teeth, generally forty-two in number, 

 are prominent and the neck is short and light compared with 

 the large head. The body is long and apparently powerful. 

 The legs are rather short. The fore and hind feet are much 

 the same in size and general character, each foot having five 

 clawed toes, the toes being relatively shorter than in most re- 

 cent carnivores. Whether or not it was digitigrade or planti- 

 grade is uncertain. It may have been semi-plantigrade. 



The life habits of these animals are not entirely clear. 

 There seems to be some reason for the early suggestion that 

 fhey were perhaps semi-aquatic, but later investigation has 

 •thrown doubt upon this. Plate 24 is a restoration in life as given 

 in Knipe's book, Nebula to Man, and Fgure 11 shows the skele- 

 ton, Hyaenodon cruentus, as restored by Scott. 



Figure 11— Restored Skeleton of Hyaenodon cruentus. After Scott 1895. 



CANIDAE 



The Canidae are abundantly represented in the badland 

 formations of the Black Hills region. Twenty-one species are 

 now know, of which nine are from the Oligocene and twelve 

 from the Miocene. 



The earliest North American Canidae recognized as such 

 are found in the Upper Eocene. They first appeared in Europe 

 at about this time also and were abundant in both Europe and 

 North America during Oligocene and Miocene times. They 

 are known to have reached India by the early part of the Plio- 

 cene, and seem to have migrated along the Isthmus of Panama 

 to South America as soon as it emerged from the sea at the dawn 



