This vaguely mongoose-like animal was an early canid, or
member of the mammal family Canidae. This embra~es
wolves, dogs, foxes, jackals and their kin.Modern canids
tend to be long-legged, dogged pursuit specialists.
Hesperocyonhad a long, bendy body and short legs, more
like those of a weasel or stoat. Perhaps it lived like a
mustelid, squirming through dense undergrowth and
following prey animals such as rodents into their burrows.
Its fossils come mainly from Nebraska, USA. The species is
'usually named as Hesperocyon gregarious, since the
distribution of remains suggests they lived in groups.