Vinayakia

Vinayakia
Temporal range: Miocene
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Placentalia
Mirorder: Ferae
Genus: †Vinayakia
Pilgrim, 1932
Type species
Vinayakia nocturna
Pilgrim, 1932
Other Species
  • Vinayakia intermedia Prasad, 1963
  • Vinayakia sarcophaga Pilgrim, 1932

Vinayakia is an chimeric genus of ferae with three species: Vinayakia nocturna, the type species, Vinayakia intermedia, and Vinayakia sarcophaga. All three species were based on fossils collected from the Miocene-aged Nagri and Chinji Formations of the Siwaliks in India and Pakistan.

History and naming

The genus Vinayakia was erected by British paleontologist Guy Ellcock Pilgrim in 1932 for two equally new species: Vinayakia nocturna, the type species, and Vinayakia sarcophaga. V. nocturna was described based a right mandibular ramus (GSI-D 221) collected from the Nagri Formation two miles northeast of Kadirpur in the Attock District of the Salt Range. An additional fossil, a partial right maxilla (GSI-D 218) collected near Bahitta in the Jhelum District of the Salt Range, was also described and referred to the species. V. sarcophaga was based on an associated left and right maxillae (GSI-D 217) collected by Vinayak Rao from the Chinji Formation south of Kotal Kund in the Jelum District. The genus name Vinayakia honored of Rao Bahadur M. Vinayak Bao, a colleague of Pilgrim, in appreciation of his work with Siwalik fossils; no etymologies were given for the species names.[1]

A third species, Vinayakia intermedia, was described in 1963 based on fossils from the Nagri Formation in the Haritalyangar area.[2]

In a 2025 review of Siwalik carnivorans, Barry considers the remains used to describe Vinayakia to belong to non-felids, with GSI D 221 being referred to an intermediate hyaenid, and the two maxillae likely to a medium-sized hyaenodont. However, he does not mention Vinayakia intermedia.[3]

Description

Pilgrim described V. nocturna as an extremely large cat, midway between a tiger and a leopard in size, and V. sarcophaga as similar in size to V. nocturna.[1]

Classification

Pilgrim theorized that Vinayakia represented an aberrant line descended from Proailurus, with V. sarcophaga ancestral to V. nocturna. He further considered Mellivorodon palaeindicus a direct, degenerate descendant of Vinayakia, and associated with Vinayakia another specimen GSI-D 220, a fragmentary upper first molar that he described in the same paper as an indeterminate felid, due to it being similar in shape to equivalent teeth in Proailurus but agreeing in size with V. nocturna. He classified Vinayakia as part of the felid subfamily Proailurinae.[1]

Edwin Colbert, in 1935, followed Pilgrim's classification of Vinayakia as a proailurine, but considered the genus "of little value" due to the fragmentary nature of the fossils.[4]

In 2025, Barry has stated that Vinayakia nocturna is a chimera of hyaenid and hyaenodont remains, with Vinayakia sarcophaga being morphologically similar to a hyaenodont.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c Pilgrim, G. (1932). "The fossil Carnivora of India". Palaeontologia Indica, Memoirs of the Geological Survey of India. 18: 157–164.
  2. ^ Prasad, K. N. (1963). "Fossil Carnivora from the Siwalik beds of Haritalyangar, Himachal Pradesh". Journal of the Mineralogical Society of India. 17: 95.
  3. ^ a b Barry, John C. (2025). "Siwalik Creodonta and Carnivora". In Badgley, Catherine; Morgan, Michèle E.; Pilbeam, David R. (eds.). At the foot of the Himalayas: paleontology and ecosystem dynamics of the Siwalik record. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 213–239. ISBN 978-1-4214-5027-8.
  4. ^ Colbert, Edwin H. (1935). "Siwalik Mammals in the American Museum of Natural History". Transactions of the American Philosophical Society. 26: 117. doi:10.2307/1005467. JSTOR 1005467.

Content Disclaimer

Informasi ini disarikan dari Wikipedia dan disajikan kembali untuk tujuan edukasi. Konten tersedia di bawah lisensi CC BY-SA 3.0. Kami tidak bertanggung jawab atas ketidakakuratan data yang bersumber dari kontribusi publik tersebut.

  1. The information displayed on this website is sourced in part or in whole from Wikipedia and has been adapted for the purpose of restating it. We strive to provide accurate and relevant information, however:
  2. There is no guarantee of absolute accuracy. Wikipedia is an open, collaborative project that can be edited by anyone, so information is subject to change.
  3. It is not intended to constitute professional advice. The content displayed is for informational and educational purposes only. For important decisions (e.g., medical, legal, or financial), please consult a professional.
  4. Content copyright. Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). This means that content may be reused with appropriate attribution and shared under a similar license.
  5. Responsible use. Any risk arising from the use of information from this website is entirely the responsibility of the user.