| Canid brain evolution followed three independent, yet convergent paths. Each of the three canid subfamilies (Hesperocyoninae, Borophaginae and Caninae) started with a simple brain, which gradually became more complicated as the cerebral cortex became larger and more fissured, the cerebellar hemispheres became larger and the vermis more twisted. The extent to which these evolutionary changes took place differs between the three canid subfamilies. Caninae, the living group, has the most advanced external brain anatomy. This is related to the general tendency of the carnivore brain to become more convoluted through geological time. A parallel development of similar sulcal patt erns took place in independent lineages within the Canidae. As a result, some... |
