Raoellidae

 ( Whippomorphs ) 

Raoellidae, previously grouped within Helohyidae, are an extinct family of semiaquatic digitigrade in the clade Whippomorpha. Fossils of Raoellids are found in Eocene strata of South Asia and Southeast Asia.

An exceptionally complete skeleton of Indohyus, the best preserved Raoellid, from Kashmir suggests that Raoellids are the "missing link" sister group to whales (Cetacea). All other Artiodactyla are relatives of these two groups. δO¹⁸ values and osteosclerotic bones indicate that the raccoon-like Indohyus was habitually aquatic. However, it is still unclear if Indohyus primarily fed on land or in water. It is hypothesized that cetaceans evolved from ancestors similar to Raoellids and later fully adapted to aquatic life.

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Taxonomy

• Rajouria
• Rajouria gunnelli
• Haqueina?
• Haqueina haquei
• Haqueina haichinensis
• Indohyus
• Indohyus indirae
• Indohyus major?
• Kunmunella
• Kunmunella kalakotensis
• Kunmunella transversa
• Metkatius
• Metkatius kashmiriensis
• Khirtharia
• Khirtharia aurea
• Khirtharia dayi
• Khirtharia inflata
• Khirtharia major?

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Phylogeny In 2011 a study was published examining the remains of a possible raoellid from China. After a Phylogenetics, they found it to be most closely related to previously named species of Khirtharia, placing it under this genus as the new species K. major. The phylogenetic tree that resulted from their analysis placed Haqueina outside of Raoellidae in the clade Dichobunidae, a group of artiodacyls not closely related to Cetacea. The study did not include Rajourna due to Rajouria only being described after this study was published.

It found that Raoellidae is Monophyly. Kunmunella is the most basal member of Raoellidae, followed by Indohyus, and then Metkatius and Khirtharia.

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Sources

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