Dissopsalis

Dissopsalis Temporal range: middle to late Miocene
Comparison of various Early to Middle Miocene hyaenodonts, including the hyainailurids Hyainailouros sulzeri (top) and Megistotherium osteothlastes (center), and teratodontid Dissopsalis pyroclasticus
Dissopsalis carnifex skull restoration, specimen AM19401
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	†Hyaenodonta
Superfamily:	†Hyainailouroidea
Family:	†Teratodontidae
Subfamily:	†Teratodontinae
Tribe:	†Dissopsalini
Genus:	†Dissopsalis Pilgrim, 1910
Type species
†Dissopsalis carnifex Pilgrim, 1910
Species
†D. carnifex (Pilgrim, 1910) †D. pyroclasticus (Savage, 1965)
Synonyms
synonyms of species: D. carnifex: Dissopsalis ruber (Pilgrim, 1910)

Dissopsalis ("double scissors") is a genus of teratodontine hyaenodonts of the tribe Dissopsalini. The older species, D. pyroclasticus, lived in Kenya during the middle Miocene, while the type species, D. carnifex, lived in Pakistan and India during the middle to late Miocene.

Dissopsalis is the last known hyaenodont genus. It lived alongside its relative Hyaenodon weilini, a member of the very successful genus Hyaenodon, during the Miocene in China. Dissopsalis survived to the end of the Miocene, whereas H. weilini did not.

Phylogeny

The phylogenetic relationships of genus Dissopsalis are shown in the following cladogram:

†Teratodontidae

†Teratodontinae    †Ekweeconfractus    ?  †Teratodontinae sp. (BC 2’08)    ?  †Teratodontinae sp. (CBI-1-614)        †Dissopsalini   †Dissopsalis    †Dissopsalis carnifex     †Dissopsalis pyroclasticus       †Buhakia       †Brychotherium         †Metasinopa       †Masrasector nananubis    ?  †Masrasector pithecodacos †Masrasector         †Masrasector aegypticum     †Masrasector ligabuei         †Anasinopa     †Teratodontini