ctenodactylid

plural ctenodactylids

1. biologyAny of the several rodents of the family Ctenodactylidae.

   Miocene and Pliocene ctenodactylids are known from Asia and Africa. In the Oligocene forms cheek-teeth were brachydont, and all known fossil ctenodactylids retained P 4 and p 4, with these teeth showing various stages of reduction.

   1967, Sydney Anderson, Recent Mammals of the World: A Synopsis of Families, page 30

   2 more examples

   According to Luckett (1985), Bugge (1985), and George (1985), ctenodactylids are an early offshoot of the hystricognathous rodents. Beintema et al. (1991), stating that no molecular data were available, investigated tissues, blood, and proteins and concluded that it was not yet possible to determine whether ctrnodactylids and hystricognathous rodents "share a common ancestor or are located on separate branches."

   2005, Fritz Dieterlen, “Family Ctenodactylidae”, in Don E. Wilson, DeeAnn M. Reeder, editors, Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, 3rd edition, volume 12, page 1536

   Ctenodactylids share many derived characters with the Hystricognathi, but ctenodactylids retain many primitive features and are considered (along with the Diatomyidae) a possible sister group to hystriognath rodents (Dietrlen 2005; Huchon et al. 2007).

   2011, Terry A. Vaughan, James M. Ryan, Nicholas J. Czaplewski, Mammalogy, unnumbered page

   Synonyms: comb rat, gundi