Amphicyonidae

Amphicyonidae is an extinct family of terrestrial carnivorans belonging to the suborder Caniformia. They first appeared in North America in the middle Eocene (around 45 Ma), spread to Europe by the late Eocene (35 Ma), and further spread to Asia and Africa by the early Miocene (23 Ma). They had largely disappeared worldwide by the late Miocene (9-7 Ma), with the latest recorded species at the end of the Miocene in Africa. They were among the first carnivorans to evolve large body size. Amphicyonids are colloquially referred to as "bear-dogs".

==Taxonomy== thumb|left|Restoration of Amphicyon ingens The family was erected by Haeckel in 1866 (also attributed to Trouessart 1885). Their exact position has long been disputed. Early paleontologists usually defined them as members of Canidae (the dog family) or Ursidae (the bear family), but the modern consensus is that they form their own family. Some researchers have defined it as the sister clade to ursids, based on morphological analysis of the ear region. However, cladistic analysis and reclassification of several species of early carnivore as amphicyonids has strongly suggested that they may be basal caniforms, a lineage older than the origin of both bears and dogs.