| Phlaocyonini Fossil range: Oligocene to Miocene |
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Phlaocyonini † is a hypocarnivorous clade or tribe of Borophaginae. This is an extinct group of canids that were endemic to North America and which lived during the Whitneyan stage (33.3 Mya) of the Oligocene epoch to the Early Barstovian (13.6 Mya) of the Miocene.[1] Phlaocyonini existed for .
The clade includes Cynarctoides and Phlaocyon. These two genus members represent differing approaches of hypocarnivory. The Cynarctoides trend toward having molar teeth with crowns formed of crescent-shaped cusps and remain small in size. Phlaocyon specialize toward rounded cusps on the molar teeth but of increasing size, with an unusual trend toward being hypercarnivores by two terminal species in the clade.
Four transitional species of Cormocyon and Desmocyon occupy intermediate positions between the Phlaocyonini and Cynarctina. These represent a gradual size increase toward medium-size individuals.[2]
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