. 24/7 Space News .
EARLY EARTH
Fossil teeth show packs of hyenas roamed the ancient Arctic
by Brooks Hays
Washington (UPI) Jun 18, 2019

Today, hyenas are found only in the warmer climates of Africa and Asia, but new research suggests the scavengers roamed the Arctic during the last ice age.

In a paper published Tuesday in the journal Open Quaternary, paleontologists described a pair of fossilized teeth belonging to Chasmaporthetes, an extinct genus of hyenas -- sometimes called the hunting or running hyena.

The teeth were first unearthed in the 1970s. Researchers guessed the teeth belonged to hyenas, but a formal analysis was never completed.

"Fossils of this genus of hyenas had been found in Africa, Europe and Asia, and also in the southern United States," Jack Tseng, paleontologist at the University of Buffalo, said in a news release. "But where and how did these animals get to North America? The teeth we studied, even though they were just two teeth, start to answer those questions."

Like early humans, ancient hyenas probably trekked across Beringia, the land bridge that connects Asia and North America when sea levels drop. From the Yukon, the hyenas migrated south into Mexico. The newly identified teeth suggest running hyenas were able to survive in the Arctic.

"It is amazing to imagine hyenas thriving in the harsh conditions above the Arctic Circle during the ice age," Grant Zazula, a paleontologist for the Yukon Government. "Chasmaporthetes probably hunted herds of ice age caribou and horses or scavenged carcasses of mammoths on the vast steppe-tundra that stretched from Siberia to Yukon Territory."

Scientists estimated the age of the teeth between 850,000 and 1.4 million years old. But hyenas moved into North America much earlier. Paleontologists have previously found 5-million-year-old hyena remains in the southern United States.

Hyenas disappeared from North America before the arrival of the first humans, some 500,000 years ago, but scientists aren't sure why. Some researchers suggest the carnivores were pushed out by another adept scavenger, the short-faced bear Arctodus simus, which lived in North America until the end of the ice age, around 12,000 years ago.


Related Links
Explore The Early Earth at TerraDaily.com


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


EARLY EARTH
Giant trilobite fossil found on Australia's Kangaroo Island
Washington (UPI) Jun 13, 2019
Paleontologists have discovered a giant new trilobite species on South Australia's Kangaroo Island. The discovery promises insights into the success of arthropods during the Cambrian Explosion. Though now extinct, trilobites were one of the most successful animal groups in evolutionary history. The horseshoe crab-like creatures boasted hard, calcified exoskeletons adorned with a series of sharp spines. The primitive arthropods survived for 270 million years and are abundant in the fossil record ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

EARLY EARTH
With lions, elephants, Airbnb goes all-in on adventure tours

Science suffers collateral damage as US, China tensions rise

NASA renames street for 'hidden' black women mathematicians

India hopes to launch 'very small' space station after 2022

EARLY EARTH
Swedish Space Corporation to introduce a new service for easy access to space

Raytheon, Northrop Grumman partner on hypersonic missile system

European reusable launch systems for more sustainability in spaceflight

Viasat to become first commercial customer to launch aboard the Ariane 64

EARLY EARTH
Meteors explain Mars' cloud cover

The Mast is raised for NASA's Mars 2020 rover

Robotic arm will raise the support structure and help the Mole hammer

Mars Helicopter Testing Enters Final Phase

EARLY EARTH
Luokung and Land Space to develop control system for space and ground assets

Yaogan-33 launch fails in north China, Possible debris recovered in Laos

China develops new-generation rockets for upcoming missions

China's satellite navigation industry sees rapid development

EARLY EARTH
Apollo-era tech built foundation, but private industry now leads space innovation

Space agencies come together

Luxembourg Space Agency approves EUR 1 million grant to Kleos Space

American Astronomical Society issues position statement on satellite constellations

EARLY EARTH
Earth's heavy metals result of supernova explosion, University of Guelph research reveals

Laser trick produces high-energy terahertz pulses

A new manufacturing process for aluminum alloys

Compliant space mechanisms

EARLY EARTH
Most Comprehensive Search for Radio Technosignatures

The formative years: giant planets vs. brown dwarfs

Jupiter-like exoplanets found in sweet spot in most planetary systems

Giant planets orbiting sun-like stars may be rare

EARLY EARTH
Table salt compound spotted on Europa

On Pluto the Winter is approaching, and the atmosphere is vanishing into frost

Neptune's moon Triton fosters rare icy union

Juno Finds Changes in Jupiter's Magnetic Field









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.