| Bastetodon sytros Temporal range: Oligocene (Rupelian) | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | †Hyaenodonta |
| Family: | †Hyainailouridae |
| Subfamily: | †Hyainailourinae |
| Genus: | †Bastetodon |
| Binomial name | |
| †Bastetodon syrtos | |
Bastetodon sytros was a hyaenodont mammal that lived in the Jebel Qatrani Formation, 30 million years ago. It was named on 17th of February 2025. It was probably an apex predator.
Discovery and Naming[]
Bastetodon sytros was first unearthed in 1999 and wrongly classified as Pterodon, a historic wastebasket taxon. In 2025 it was reassigned to the new genus Bastetodon. Bastetodon was named after the cat god Bastet from ancient Egyptian mythology. The current fossils consist of a skull.
Classification[]
Bastetodon was the sister taxon to the smaller Falcatodon. The fossil consists of an almost complete skull.
Description[]
Bastetodon was about the size of a modern leopard or hyena. Possibly being about 104 lbs. (47 kilos.)
Paleoecology[]
Bastetodon was probably an apex predator in the Jebel Qatrani Formation, hunting local herbivores possibly including Arsinoitherium and Bothriogenys.