Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 27, 2026

Conoryctidae

Conoryctidae is an extinct family of mammals from extinct order Taeniodonta, that lived in North America and Europe from the early Paleocene to early Eocene.

Last revised
Jun 27, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
378 w
Citations
6
Source
Conoryctidae
Temporal range: Early Paleocene - Early Eocene
skull of Conoryctes comma
lower jaw fragment of
Conoryctella dragonensis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Clade: Eutheria
Infraclass: Placentalia (?)
Order: Taeniodonta
Family: Conoryctidae
Wortman, 18961
Type genus
Conoryctes
Cope, 1881
Subfamilies
Synonyms
  • Conoryctinae (Schlosser, 1911)2
  • Conoryctini (Winge, 1917)3

Conoryctidae ("cone diggers") is an extinct family of mammals from extinct order Taeniodonta, that lived in North America and Europe from the early Paleocene to early Eocene.456

Taxonomy and phylogeny

Taxonomy

  • Family: †Conoryctidae (Wortman, 1896)
    • Subfamily: †Conoryctinae (Wortman, 1896)
      • Tribe: †Conoryctellini (Schoch, 1982)
        • Genus: †Conoryctella (Gazin, 1939)
          • Conoryctella dragonensis (Gazin, 1939)
          • Conoryctella pattersoni (Schoch & Lucas, 1981)
      • Tribe: †Conoryctini (Wortman, 1896)
        • Genus: †Conoryctes (Cope, 1881)
          • Conoryctes comma (Cope, 1881)
        • Genus: †Huerfanodon(paraphyletic genus) (Schoch & Lucas, 1981)
          • Huerfanodon heilprinianus (Cope, 1882)
          • Huerfanodon polecatensis (Schoch & Lucas, 1981)
          • Huerfanodon torrejonius (Schoch & Lucas, 1981)
          • Huerfanodon sp. [USNM 9678] (Simpson, 1937)
    • Subfamily: †Eurodontinae (Estavis & Russel, 1992)
      • Genus: †Eurodon (Estavis & Russel, 1992)
        • Eurodon silveirinhensis (Estavis & Russel, 1992)

Phylogeny

Placentalia

Atlantogenata

Boreoeutheria

Palaeoryctida

Ambilestes

Procerberidae

Alveugena

Taeniodonta

Schowalteria

Stylinodontoidea

Onychodectidae

Conoryctidae
Eurodontinae
Eurodon

Eurodon silveirinhensis

Conoryctinae
Conoryctellini
Conoryctella

Conoryctella dragonensis

Conoryctella pattersoni

Conoryctini

Huerfanodon heilprinianus

Huerfanodon torrejonius

Huerfanodon
?

Huerfanodon sp. (USNM 9678)

Huerfanodon polecatensis

Conoryctes

Conoryctes comma

References

References

  1. Wortman, J. L. (1896.) "The Ganodonta and their relationship to the Edentata." Bulletin of the AMNH; vol. 9, article 6
  2. Schlosser M. (1911.) "Mammalia", p. 325-585; In: F. Broili, E. Koken and M. Schlosser [eds.] "Grundzuge der Paläontologie (Paläozoologie) von Karl A. von Zittel". Druck und Verlag, von R. Oldenbourg, München and Berlin, vol. 2.
  3. Winge H. (1917.) "Udsigt over Insektaedernes indbyrdes Slaeggtskab." Videnskabelige meddelelser fra Dansk Naturhistorisk Forening i København, 68: 82-203.
  4. Cox, Barry; Savage, R.J.G.; Gardiner, Brian; Dixon, Dougal (1988). "Early rooters and browsers". Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. Macmillan London Limited. ISBN 978-0-333-48699-3.
  5. McKenna, Malcolm C.; Bell, Susan K. (1997). Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-11012-9. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  6. Williamson, T. E.; Brusatte, S. L. (2013). Viriot, Laurent (ed.). "New Specimens of the Rare Taeniodont Wortmania (Mammalia: Eutheria) from the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Comments on the Phylogeny and Functional Morphology of "Archaic" Mammals". PLOS ONE. 8 (9) e75886. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...875886W. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0075886. PMC 3786969. PMID 24098738.