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The Future is Far: from procyonids to herbocans

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Description

During great part of the Cenozoic, the Carnivora group dominated many of the predator niches throughout the planet after the extinction of some of the primordial mammalian carnivores, becoming the predominant mammal group of both terrestrial and partly marine carnivores; however, not all of its members have been large and dangerous predators, as well, Has included an interesting variety of omnivorous forms, such as various species of ursids, some canids, and especially Procyonids. This group which evolved and until the age of humans lived on America that emerged during the Neogene period is formed largely by small and generalists omnivorous, who despite their recent appearance have been able to take several niches both on land and in the trees, however, long of the future they have a much larger role, one that will lead them to diversify and take one of the most stranger roles that a whole clade descendant of the carnivora has come to possess.

The rest of the Quaternary

After the human era, many procyonids remained in their niches, although with the reduction of the bears by the climatic changes at the end of the Holocene left open the niches of large omnivores that in a few million years were filled by some individuals of the group along with some suines. Something more, the separation of the Americas had a quite profound effect on the diversity of these, resulting in the divergence in both zones during the rest of the Quaternary, in the Lethargocene epoch (39 m.y.). In the north many of the procyonids became great terrestrial omnivores in terms of megafauna, but strangely, the same niche was occupied by two different ascendency, being in the north descendants of the raccoons and more to the south being descendants of coatis. The north raccoons soon managed to emigrate by the newly formed Beringia, expanding the dominion of this group to the east of Asia. 

In the south something similar occurred, however, the coatis managed to be the dominant group on the continent, having a greater variety of great and medium size species adapted to being omnivores, insectivores and some even scavengers. Also at the same time, one of the most derived types of the Carnivora group, descendant of the genus Potos, appeared, which will be described below.

 

Paxiursops sp.
A great terrestrial procyonid, is a descendant of the coatis that were isolated in North America, being quite dispersed throughout the southern territory of the continent during the, it has a length of about 2 meters of and a weight of 300 kg. Paxiursops are mostly gregarious, meeting in bands of 10 to 16 individuals, conformed by females and youngsters of both sexes, being the adult males quite solitary. They are omnivorous, having a diet consisting of insects, small or medium sized vertebrates, carrion and fruits. Like a hog, it uses the nose to find food on ground and sometimes is able to dig in the surface for fungus or insects.

Dendrocanus stenopoda
This large tree dweller is one of the descendants of the kinkajou in South America, around 39 million years after man. Unlike its ancestor, it has specialized in a diet completely of leaves instead of plants, having a quite slow lifestyle, similar to the one of the sloths. The arms have become long, in conjunction with his hands, which have developed a sixth finger, an opposable pseudo-thumb which allows it along with the tail to cling to the branches; the neck is quite long, which ends with a short head that has a flat nose, rounded ears, semi-binocular eyes and a mouth that has greatly reduced canines but has strong molars and incisors.

 

Changing roles

The end of the quaternary by an asteroid that collided in the northwest Asia, led to the extinction of much of the predominant fauna, which included a great part of the procyonids, being killed most of the large and specialized forms, however, the whole group managed to resist and survive the event by generalist small individuals in North America. After the cataclysm these survivors quickly took advantage of vacant niches, but one of the lineages in particular soon began to develop in a completely different evolutionary path, away from the procyonid and even Carnivora forms.

Paragaleus paradoxus
This genus descendant of the raccoons occupies a place as small active but nocturnal omnivores, inhabitants of trees and ground of North America during the Agresti period, in the Exevocene (65 m.y.). It is a relic of the quaternary, being the last remaining of the Procyonidae family. Is mainly fed on insects, small vertebrates, decomposing material and fruit. Paragaleus are a rather solitary species, only congregating sometimes in certain places to eat, to inhabit or to reproduce, although the females tend to remain united with their young until they are able to take care itself.


Order Folivocyna

Also named “Herbocans”, these are descendants of the early procyonids which managed to take the roles of the herbivores around North America and northeast Asia during the Agresti and the rest of the macro-continent hiperborea during the rest of the Cenozoic. They have evolve convergently with the now reduced and almost extinct group of ungulate, developing several of its features like hoofed toes and specialized stomachs for the digestion of plants. 

Family Archeofolicynae

These are the early forms of this group, being oreodont-like creatures which possess 5 to 4 hoofed toes, most of the members are gregarious herbivores that eat different types of vegetation from grass, to leaf. The most characteristic of them are their developed canines which depending on the species vary slightly the shape and size.

Martiietherium sp.
The most common genus of medium size herbivores around the early Agresti period, this genus conformed by 5 species is widespread in much of the northern Euroasiatic territory. Are quite robust in appearance, with a long tail, a semi-cylindrical body with strong limbs that allow them to reach speeds up to 40 km per hour; the head is long, with fairly small ears, eyes to the sides, and a jaw with a not very specialized dentition. They inhabit mainly in wooded areas, tending to travel in groups of about 10 (vary among species) or more individuals which are made up of varied members of different ages.

Primitive hoofed procyonid by Martiitram
The largest species, M. meleris is large as a sheep. (draw created by 
Martiitram)

Smilopotamus penguirhinus
After a time, Archeofolicynae around the Optimacene (107 m.y.) began to be replaced by their variants which were better adapted to eat the vegetation and in long term, they became extinct around the hemisphere. But some species found a stable niche by which in the next millions of years they would remain and survive, and at the end, evolving in beings similar to the extinct hippos. The Smilopotamus is a semiaquatic robust species of about 2 m long, characterized by its appearance, has an enormous head that makes up a third of its total length, which sports a muscular but short trunk with huge nostrils that can extend out of the water to breathe and a long mouth with two protruding upper canines, being used mainly for the fight against predators or other individuals.

 

Expansion

In the late Agresti, around the Optimacene epoch (65-107 m.y.) and the rest of the Crescgeon (107-145 m.y.), the formation of the macro-continent hyperborea helped enough this group of herbivores could easily disperse to different territories around, being the only parts non populated by them South America, Antarctica, the sub-continent Aaru and many other isolated islands, despite having a varied competition against different groups of large herbivorous mammals such as Afrotherians and several of the few surviving ungulate.

Family Unguverae

The first and the predominant family of the Herbocans are characterized by the development of their canines in huge tusks that protrude to the sides of the head, which depending on the species, vary in shape and length. The structure of the feet of these strange derived carnivore with hooves conforms in three to 4 toes with the fifth completely absent. Many of the members of this group are mainly browsers, with a few specialized grazers and even some omnivorous species.

Aepyodontus sp.
One of the most extended representatives of the unguveras, this genus is formed by about 15 to 20 species that are scattered throughout the northern hemisphere around Europe, Asia and parts of North America and Africa during the late Agresti and most around the Crescgeon. These deer-like herbivores have huge tusks curved towards the front which depending on the species vary in form, from simple structures like blades to long and branched ornaments like antlers, being the males that show such forms, whereas the females have them quite reduced. They are forest dwellers, usually living in large herds of up to 25 individuals.

Parabrachiotherium magnificus
This huge Unguvera is one of the largest members of the herbocans, being almost 3 m tall at the shoulder and weight 2.5 tonnes, is a heavy browser inhabitant of the forest around Europe and North Africa.  It is quite robust and muscular in appearance, with two large blade-shaped tusks that extend laterally which with a good movement of its body can impale any undesirable hunter; this species does not have many predators at the moment of reaching the maturity. The members of this species are territorial in excess and quite aggressive, especially during times of mate, an adult male provoked tends to attack any being that enters its range of vision.

Micromota formicicus
This is one of the smallest members of the group with a length of about 1 m, a height of 40 cm at the shoulder and weighting about 3 kg, is an insectivorous species which lives in the south of Asia around India and Indonesian peninsula, in the semiarid territories. It uses the hooves to dig between mounds and eusocial insect nests, and with the long tongue it is able to catch a good amount of them. It is a very shy creature, being of nocturnal habits which hide in burrows under the ground that they dig during the day.

Family Bovimixidae

Unlike the previous group, the digestive system is more specialized to extract the maximum possible food value of the plants, with stomach divided into 3 different chambers capable of digestion and fermentation and instead of high developed tusks they evolved different varieties of cranial appendages like horns formed not by bone but by keratin; in many species, both frontal and hind limbs possess only 2 toes with hooves, with the third almost atrophied and the fourth abstinent, but some species have largely lost their toes, remaining only the fourth which supports the entire weight of the animal.. Most of the members of this group are grazers, being scattered largely in the savannas and grasslands of hyperborea, evolved around the Crescgeon from the great climatic changes that changed the predominantly forest environments to a dry one with predominant low vegetation like grass.

Cerovelerus villosus
This species is a mountain dweller inhabitant of the huge Sahul Mountains formed by the collision of Australia with Beringia around the Crescgeon. The Cerovelerus quite agile, capable of maneuvering well between the vertical walls of the scratches, usually inhabit small groups of several individuals, made up of an adult male, several females both young and adult and other smaller males. In its head protrudes a horn rather thick and round in form of "D", which mainly uses like weapon, is designed to receive strong head-butts.

Tetraconis cinerus
One of the predominant African herbivore species is a large bovimixid of about 2.5 to 3 meters long, characterized by its trunk which used to pull both the grasses of the soil and the leaves of tall trees and its 4 horns growing along the skull. Tetraconis live in enormous groups of up to 100 individuals which during periods of migration these can congregate and join in massive migratory herds of thousands.

The Imminent death

At the end of the road, like their ungulate predecessors during the great extinction of the Quaternary, the last distant descendants of the carnivore procyonids would face a new catastrophic event much worst in comparison with that faced by their ancestral forms, being this time a basalt eruption in the place what was once the Arabic peninsula in 145 million years after the humans. The ensuing ecological chaos is strong enough to carry much of the animals at the moment to their terrible doom, including the now highly specialized Herbocans, which in a couple of thousand years they join with the thousands of species to the same fatal fate.

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are these still canon to tfif? which groups are still canon?