DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Phylogeny and Biogeography of Hyaenodontidae (Mammalia, Placentalia)

在现代生态系统中，处于食物链顶端的哺乳动物是食肉目的成员，如狗、猫和鬣狗。但在哺乳动物时代的大部分时间里，食肉动物与一种已灭绝的哺乳动物家族Hyaenodontidae共享食肉生态位。在欧亚大陆、北美和非洲都可以找到这个多样化科的物种。在非洲，这些哺乳动物是我们早期祖先进化的生态系统中的主要捕食者。尽管它们是食肉动物，但鬣狗类可能与食肉动物没有密切的关系，它们在哺乳动物家谱中的位置尚未确定。本研究项目将厘清鬣狗种间的关系，并检验其科系。利用分子和解剖学证据和复杂的技术重建物种之间的关系，在哺乳动物家谱中的位置。更好地了解最早的陆生食肉动物对于理解现代哺乳动物生态系统的进化、依赖肉类饮食的进化以及欧亚、非洲和美洲生态系统在早期新生代（6500万至1000万年前）之间的生物联系至关重要。这项研究已经引起了高中生和本科生的合作，并成为石溪大学科学与工程专业女性课程的一部分。它还为想要用古生物学来教授纽约核心课程目标的小学和高中教师提供了在线资源。

In modern ecosystems, the mammals at the top of the food chain are members of the order Carnivora, such as dogs, cats, and hyaenas. But for the much of the Age of Mammals, carnivorans shared the meat-eating niche with an extinct family of mammals called Hyaenodontidae. Species from this diverse family could be found across Eurasia, North America, and Africa. In Africa, these mammals were the primary predators in the ecosystems where our early ancestors evolved. Despite their carnivorous habits, hyaenodontids might not have been closely related to carnivorans, and their place in the mammalian family tree has not yet been established. This research project will clarify the relationships between hyaenodontid species and test the family?s position within the mammalian family tree using molecular and anatomical evidence and sophisticated techniques for reconstructing relationships between species.A better understanding of the earliest land-based carnivores is essential for understanding the evolution of modern mammalian ecosystems, the evolution of meat-dependent diets, and the biological connections between Eurasian, African, and American ecosystems through the early Cenozoic Era (65 to 10 million years ago). This research has already generated collaborations with high school students, undergraduate students, and has formed part of a course offered to Women in Science and Engineering at Stony Brook University. It has also generated online resources for late elementary and high school teachers who want to use paleontology to teach New York core-curriculum objectives.