The most complete specimen of Eucyon ever found in Europe, was discovered in the province of Cuneo, Italy.
A study detailing the find was published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.
The skeleton, dating back to the late Miocene, was in anatomical connection, meaning the bones were still articulated in their original position. "The find impressed us immediately for its extraordinary state of preservation," said Professor Giorgio Carnevale from the University of Turin, according to La Stampa. There was a paw curled up near the head; it seemed a wonderful fact to the researchers.
Fossil finds like the one from Verduno are rare. Despite its evolutionary importance, complete fossils of Eucyon are extremely rare, making it difficult to reconstruct the history of this now-extinct predator.
The genus Eucyon represents one of the oldest members of the Canine family, which includes modern wolves. Eucyon first appeared in the late Miocene, about 10 million years ago. It spread from America to Eurasia through the Bering Strait, marking a crucial moment in the evolution of canids. Eucyon exhibits intermediate characteristics between foxes and modern canids—wolves, jackals, coyotes, and their relatives.
According to the University of Perugia, the discovery of new finds like the one in Verduno is fundamental to better understand the evolution of these carnivores and their role in past ecosystems. The analyses conducted on this fossil specimen allowed researchers to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships between the different species of Eucyon discovered to date. This offers a new and updated interpretation of the diversification of the Eucyon group and its relationships with foxes and modern canids.
The finding was followed by years of study among Perugia, Pisa, and Turin, conducted by an international team of paleontologists from the Universities of Perugia, Milan, Turin, Sapienza University of Rome, the National Research Council of Pisa, the Museum of Natural History in Berlin, and the Museum of Natural History in Stockholm. Then came the comparison phase, carried out thanks to a collection of materials preserved in Stockholm, where specialist Lars Werdelin, one of the authors of the study, is operating.
"Through tomographic analyses and 3D graphic techniques, we were able to extract the bones included in the rock to analyze anatomical details never observed before, including the morphology of the brain and other structures of the skull," said Dawid Iurino from the University of Milan, according to La Stampa. The individual bones were digitally reassembled to obtain a 3D model of the skeleton.
The study took a long time because "doing CT scans on fossils is not like doing them on a living being. The internal cavities are devoid of soft parts and filled with sediment, and the bones are fossilized, so the contrast is very limited and many cross-sectional X-rays are needed, at fractions of a millimeter apart, which are then joined by software," explained Carnevale.
Beatrice Azzarà, a research fellow at the University of Perugia and coordinator of the article, explained, "The discovery of the extraordinary fossil from Verduno opens new avenues for research on the evolution of canids. This finding has allowed us to deepen, through the use of technologies of virtual paleontology, the study of cranial morphology and the brain."
The digital cast of the brain of Eucyon monticinensis revealed that the frontal cortex is much less developed compared to that of wolves and African wild dogs, species that are highly social. This portion of the brain plays a crucial role in the ability to express complex social behaviors and relationships. This suggests that Eucyon monticinensis was an opportunistic hunter, probably solitary, capable of hunting prey slightly larger than a hare but also able to feed on insects and plants.
Fossil finds like the one from Verduno provide valuable insights into the evolution of canids. The discovery underscores the importance of such rare fossils in understanding the history of these carnivores and their role in past ecosystems.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.