Misplaced Pages

#244755

53-531: Percrocutidae is an extinct family of hyaenid feliform carnivores endemic to Asia , Africa , and Southern Europe from the Middle Miocene through the Pliocene , existing for about 8 million years . The first percrocutids are known from the middle Miocene of Europe and western Asia and belonged to the genus Percrocuta . Percrocuta already had large premolars , but did not carry such

106-516: A granny cure ) is a treatment to cure a disease or ailment that employs certain spices, herbs , vegetables, or other common items. Home remedies may or may not have medicinal properties that treat or cure the disease or ailment in question, as they are typically passed along by laypersons (which has been facilitated in recent years by the Internet ). Many are merely used as a result of tradition or habit or because they are effective in inducing

159-581: A change in climate, along with the arrival of canids into Eurasia. Of the dog-like hyena lineage, only the insectivorous aardwolf survived, while the bone-crushing hyenas (including the extant spotted, brown and striped hyenas) became the undisputed top scavengers of Eurasia and Africa. The descendants of Plioviverrops reached their peak 15 million years ago, with more than 30 species having been identified. Unlike most modern hyena species, which are specialised bone-crushers, these dog-like hyenas were nimble-bodied, wolfish animals; one species among them

212-489: A massive bite as the later form Dinocrocuta , from the later Miocene. Originally, these carnivores were placed with the hyenas in the family Hyaenidae . As of 2013, most scientists considered the Percrocutidae to be a distinct family - although usually as sister-taxa/immediate outgroup to Hyaenidae. Sometimes it was placed with the family Stenoplesictidae into the superfamily Stenoplesictoidea . However, studies in

265-565: A subfamily into the Hyaenidae but as a separate family Percrocutidae. This article related to prehistoric animals from order Carnivora is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Hyena Hyenas or hyaenas ( / h aɪ ˈ iː n ə z / hi- EE -nəz ; from Ancient Greek ὕαινα , hýaina ) are feliform carnivoran mammals belonging to the family Hyaenidae ( / h aɪ ˈ ɛ n ɪ d iː / ). With just four extant species (each in its own genus ), it

318-447: A subgenus to a full genus in 1988. The family Percrocutidae was formally elevated in 1991, to include the genera Percrocuta , Dinocrocuta , Belbus and Allohyaena . Later studies have suggested that Belbus and Allohyaena are true hyaenids and not percrocutids. The list follows McKenna and Bell's Classification of Mammals for prehistoric genera (1997). In contrast to McKenna and Bell's classification, they are not included as

371-399: Is generally transmitted orally through a community, family and individuals until "collected". Within a given culture, elements of indigenous medicine knowledge may be diffusely known by many, or may be gathered and applied by those in a specific role of healer such as a shaman or midwife . Three factors legitimize the role of the healer – their own beliefs, the success of their actions and

424-546: Is likely that its unrivaled ability to digest the terpene excretions from soldier termites is a modification of the strong digestive system its ancestors used to consume fetid carrion. The striped hyena may have evolved from Hyaenictitherium namaquensis of Pliocene Africa . Striped hyena fossils are common in Africa, with records going back as far as the Villafranchian . As fossil striped hyenas are absent from

477-551: Is made from plant materials, such as bark, leaves and seeds, although animal products may be used as well. A major component of traditional medicine is herbal medicine , which is the use of natural plant substances to treat or prevent illness. American Native and Alaska Native medicine are traditional forms of healing that have been around for thousands of years. There are many ethnobotany plants involved in traditional medicine for Native Americans and some are still used today. When it comes to Native American traditional medicine,

530-449: Is needed to ascertain the efficacy and safety" of such practices and medicinal plants used by traditional medicine systems. Its "Traditional Medicine Strategy 2014–2023" said that the WHO would "support Member States in developing proactive policies and implementing action plans that will strengthen the role traditional medicine plays in keeping populations healthy." In the written record,

583-539: Is often assumed that because supposed medicines are natural that they are safe, but numerous precautions are associated with using herbal remedies. Endangered animals, such as the slow loris , are sometimes killed to make traditional medicines. Shark fins have also been used in traditional medicine, and although their effectiveness has not been proven, it is hurting shark populations and their ecosystem. The illegal ivory trade can partially be traced back to buyers of traditional Chinese medicine . Demand for ivory

SECTION 10

#1732790897245

636-768: Is the fifth-smallest family in the order Carnivora and one of the smallest in the class Mammalia . Despite their low diversity, hyenas are unique and vital components of most African ecosystems. Although phylogenetically closer to felines and viverrids , hyenas are behaviourally and morphologically similar to canids in several elements due to convergent evolution : both hyenas and canines are non- arboreal , cursorial hunters that catch prey with their teeth rather than claws. Both eat food quickly and may store it, and their calloused feet with large, blunt, nonretractable claws are adapted for running and making sharp turns. However, hyenas' grooming, scent marking , defecation habits, mating and parental behavior are consistent with

689-1193: The Furninha Cave in Portugal and the Genista Caves in Gibraltar . The European form was similar in appearance to modern populations, but was larger, being comparable in size to the brown hyena . The spotted hyena ( Crocuta crocuta ) diverged from the striped and brown hyena 10 million years ago. Its direct ancestor was the Indian Crocuta sivalensis , which lived during the Villafranchian. Ancestral spotted hyenas probably developed social behaviours in response to increased pressure from rivals on carcasses, thus forcing them to operate in teams. Spotted hyenas evolved sharp carnassials behind their crushing premolars, therefore they did not need to wait for their prey to die, and thus became pack hunters as well as scavengers. They began forming increasingly larger territories , necessitated by

742-861: The Mediterranean region, it is likely that the species is a relatively late invader to Eurasia, having likely spread outside Africa only after the extinction of spotted hyenas in Asia at the end of the Ice Age . The striped hyena occurred for some time in Europe during the Pleistocene, having been particularly widespread in France and Germany . It also occurred in Montmaurin , Hollabrunn in Austria ,

795-577: The Mid-Pleistocene transition . The four extant species are the striped hyena ( Hyaena hyaena ), the brown hyena ( Parahyaena brunnea ), the spotted hyena ( Crocuta crocuta ), and the aardwolf ( Proteles cristata ). The aardwolf can trace its lineage directly back to Plioviverrops 15 million years ago, and is the only survivor of the dog-like hyena lineage. Its success is partly attributed to its insectivorous diet, for which it faced no competition from canids crossing from North America. It

848-479: The aloe vera plant are used to treat skin disorders. Many European liqueurs or digestifs were originally sold as medicinal remedies. In Chinese folk medicine, medicinal congees (long-cooked rice soups with herbs), foods, and soups are part of treatment practices. Although 130 countries have regulations on folk medicines, there are risks associated with the use of them (i.e. zoonosis , mainly as some traditional medicines still use animal-based substances ). It

901-944: The healing modalities, ideas of body physiology and health preservation known to some in a culture, transmitted informally as general knowledge, and practiced or applied by anyone in the culture having prior experience. Many countries have practices described as folk medicine which may coexist with formalized, science-based, and institutionalized systems of medical practice represented by conventional medicine . Examples of folk medicine traditions are traditional Chinese medicine , Iranian traditional medicine , traditional Korean medicine , Arabic indigenous medicine , Uyghur traditional medicine, Japanese Kampō medicine, traditional Aboriginal bush medicine, Native Hawaiian Lāʻau lapaʻau , Curanderismo norteño, and Georgian folk medicine , among others. Generally, bush medicine used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia

954-521: The middle ear and dentition. The lineage of Plioviverrops prospered, and gave rise to descendants with longer legs and more pointed jaws, a direction similar to that taken by canids in North America . Hyenas then diversified into two distinct types: lightly built dog-like hyenas and robust bone-crushing hyenas. Although the dog-like hyenas thrived 15 million years ago (with one taxon having colonised North America), they became extinct after

1007-546: The placebo effect . One of the more popular examples of a home remedy is the use of chicken soup as an aid in treating respiratory infections such as a cold or mild flu . Other examples of home remedies include duct tape to help with setting broken bones; duct tape or superglue to treat plantar warts ; and Kogel mogel to treat sore throat. In earlier times, mothers were entrusted with all but serious remedies. Historic cookbooks are frequently full of remedies for dyspepsia , fevers, and female complaints. Components of

1060-447: The 19th and into the 20th century, with some plant medicines forming the basis for modern pharmacology. The prevalence of folk medicine in certain areas of the world varies according to cultural norms. Some modern medicine is based on plant phytochemicals that had been used in folk medicine. Researchers state that many of the alternative treatments are "statistically indistinguishable from placebo treatments ". Indigenous medicine

1113-778: The 1st millennium BC. The first Chinese herbal book was the Shennong Bencaojing , compiled during the Han dynasty but dating back to a much earlier date, which was later augmented as the Yaoxing Lun ( Treatise on the Nature of Medicinal Herbs ) during the Tang dynasty . Early recognised Greek compilers of existing and current herbal knowledge include Pythagoras and his followers , Hippocrates , Aristotle , Theophrastus , Dioscorides and Galen . Roman sources included Pliny

SECTION 20

#1732790897245

1166-416: The 2020s placed Dinocrocuta and Percrocuta as true hyaenids, invalidating the family Percrocutidae. Percrocuta was first considered as a side-branch outside of Hyaenidae by Thenius in 1966. It was later named as a different subfamily, Percrocutinae, of Hyaenidae in 1976, and at that time was proposed to include Percrocuta , Adcrocuta eximia , and Allohyaena kadici . Dinocrocuta was elevated from

1219-670: The Anglo-Saxon codex Cotton Vitellius C.III . These early Greek and Roman compilations became the backbone of European medical theory and were translated by the Persian Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā, 980–1037), the Persian Rhazes (Rāzi, 865–925) and the Jewish Maimonides . Some fossils have been used in traditional medicine since antiquity. Arabic indigenous medicine developed from the conflict between

1272-523: The Elder 's Natural History and Celsus 's De Medicina . Pedanius Dioscorides drew on and corrected earlier authors for his De Materia Medica , adding much new material; the work was translated into several languages, and Turkish , Arabic and Hebrew names were added to it over the centuries. Latin manuscripts of De Materia Medica were combined with a Latin herbal by Apuleius Platonicus ( Herbarium Apuleii Platonici ) and were incorporated into

1325-647: The European concepts of disease such as "warm", "cold", and "moist", but it is not clear that the Aztecs used these categories. Juan de Esteyneffer 's Florilegio medicinal de todas las enfermedas compiled European texts and added 35 Mexican plants. Martín de la Cruz wrote a herbal in Nahuatl which was translated into Latin by Juan Badiano as Libellus de Medicinalibus Indorum Herbis or Codex Barberini, Latin 241 and given to King Carlos V of Spain in 1552. It

1378-552: The World for extant genera. The percrocutids are, in contrast to McKenna and Bell's classification, not included as a subfamily into the Hyaenidae, but as the separate family Percrocutidae (though they are generally grouped as sister-taxa to hyenas ). Furthermore, the living brown hyena and its closest extinct relatives are not included in the genus Pachycrocuta , but in the genus Parahyaena . However, some research has suggested Parahyaena may be synonymous with Pachycrocuta , making

1431-421: The ancestral bone-crushing hyenas coincided with the decline of the similarly built family Percrocutidae . The bone-crushing hyenas survived the changes in climate and the arrival of canids, which wiped out the dog-like hyenas, though they never crossed into North America, as their niche there had already been taken by the dog subfamily Borophaginae . By 5 million years ago, the bone-crushing hyenas had become

1484-438: The behavior of other feliforms. Hyenas feature prominently in the folklore and mythology of human cultures that live alongside them. Hyenas are commonly viewed as frightening and worthy of contempt. In some cultures, hyenas are thought to influence people's spirits, rob graves, and steal livestock and children. Other cultures associate them with witchcraft, using their body parts in traditional medicine . Hyenas originated in

1537-621: The beliefs of the community. When the claims of indigenous medicine become rejected by a culture, generally three types of adherents still use it – those born and socialized in it who become permanent believers, temporary believers who turn to it in crisis times, and those who only believe in specific aspects, not in all of it. Traditional medicine may sometimes be considered as distinct from folk medicine, and considered to include formalized aspects of folk medicine. Under this definition folk medicine are longstanding remedies and practises passed on and practiced by lay people. Folk medicine consists of

1590-419: The broader context of late-Quaternary extinctions , as the late Pleistocene and early Holocene saw the disappearance of many primarily large mammals from Europe and the world. Expansion or duplication of the olfatory receptor gene family has been found in all 4 extant species, which would have led to the evolution of the more specialised feeding habits of hyenas. Expansion in immune-related gene families

1643-1347: The brown hyena the only extant member of this genus. The following cladogram illustrates the phylogenetic relationships between extant and extinct hyaenids based on the morphological analysis by Werdelin & Solounias (1991), as updated by Turner et al. (2008). Protictitherium crassum "Protictitherium" cingulatum "Protictitherium" intermedium "Protictitherium" llopisi "Protictitherium" punicum " Protictitherium" gaillardi "Protictitherium" sumegense "Protictitherium" csakvarense Plioviverrops gervaisi Plioviverrops orbignyi Plioviverrops guerini Plioviverrops faventinus Plioviverrops gaudryi Tungurictis spocki Thalassictis robusta "Thalassictis" certa "Thalassictis" montadai "Thalassictis" proava "Thalassictis" sarmatica "Thalassictis" spelaea Tongxinictis primordialis Proteles cristatus (aardwolf) [REDACTED] Proteles amplidentus Ictitherium viverrinum Ictitherium ebu Ictitherium tauricum Ictitherium ibericum Ictitherium kurteni Ictitherium intuberculatum Ictitherium pannonicum Miohyaenotherium bessarabicum Hyaenotherium wongii Hyaenictitherium hyaenoides "Hyaenictitherium" pilgrimi Traditional medicine In some Asian and African countries, up to 80% of

Percrocutidae - Misplaced Pages Continue

1696-418: The dominant scavengers of Eurasia, primarily feeding on large herbivore carcasses felled by sabre-toothed cats . One genus, Pachycrocuta , was a 110 kg (240 lb) mega-scavenger that could splinter the bones of elephants . Starting in the early Middle Pleistocene Pachycrocuta was replaced by the smaller Crocuta and Hyena , which corresponds to a general faunal change, perhaps in connection to

1749-410: The end of the last glacial period and a subsequent displacement of open grassland by closed forests, which favoured wolves and humans instead. However, analyses have shown that climate change alone is insufficient to explain the spotted hyena's disappearance from Europe, suggesting that other factors – such as human pressure – must have played a role. This suggests that the events must be seen within

1802-482: The evolution of the feeding of termites Trinervitermes in this species. Mutations and variants in genes related to craniofacial shape were also found ( GARS , GMPR , STIP1 , SMO and PAPSS2 ). Another gene is related to protective epidermis function ( DSC1 ). The list follows McKenna and Bell's Classification of Mammals for prehistoric genera (1997) and Wozencraft (2005) in Wilson and Reeders Mammal Species of

1855-480: The fact that their prey was often migratory, and long chases in a small territory would have caused them to encroach into another clan's turf. Spotted hyenas spread from their original homeland during the Middle Pleistocene , and quickly colonised a very wide area from Europe, to southern Africa and China . The eventual disappearance of the spotted hyena from Europe has traditionally been attributed to

1908-646: The head of a snake. Native Americans used foxglove herb as a treatment for an illness they referred to as dropsy or edema, which is fluid buildup typically in the lower legs, and its common cause is heart failure. In modern medicine, foxglove extract is still used under the name digitalis, and its purpose is to moderate the heart rate. Native Americans were successful with some medical practices, such as treating fevers, gastrointestinal conditions, skin rashes, setting bones, as well as birthing babies, and aiding mothers in healing. A study conducted within an IHS hospital that allows Navajo healers to visit patients found that

1961-480: The hospital had an 80 percent success rate in getting comatose patients back to consciousness, which is higher than the rate of present-day biomedical management hospitals. The plant family Asteraceae has been commonly selected for orthopedic aids and pulmonary aids, specifically the species Achillea and Artemisia . A study conducted amongst 14 different tribes within North America found that Asteraceae

2014-445: The ideas surrounding health and illness within the culture are virtually inseparable from the ideas of religion and spirituality. Healers within indigenous communities go by many names ranging from medicine man or woman to herbalist or even shaman and are considered spiritual or religious leaders within their respective tribes. When it comes to healing, tribal healers would look at a plant's characteristics to determine its efficacy for

2067-402: The jungles of Miocene Eurasia 22 million years ago, when most early feliform species were still largely arboreal . The first ancestral hyenas were likely similar to the modern African civet ; one of the earliest hyena species described, Plioviverrops , was a lithe, civet-like animal that inhabited Eurasia 20–22 million years ago, and is identifiable as a hyaenid by the structure of

2120-487: The land bridge into North America, being the only hyena to do so. Chasmaporthetes managed to survive for some time in North America by deviating from the endurance-running and bone-crushing niches monopolized by canids, and developing into a cheetah -like sprinter. Most of the dog-like hyenas had died off by 1.5 million years ago. By 10–14 million years ago, the hyena family had split into two distinct groups: dog-like hyenas and bone-crushing hyenas. The arrival of

2173-645: The magic-based medicine of the Bedouins and the Arabic translations of the Hellenic and Ayurvedic medical traditions. Spanish medicine was influenced by the Arabs from 711 to 1492. Islamic physicians and Muslim botanists such as al-Dinawari and Ibn al-Baitar significantly expanded on the earlier knowledge of materia medica. The most famous Persian medical treatise was Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine , which

Percrocutidae - Misplaced Pages Continue

2226-595: The official pharmacopoeias of Europe. The Puritans took Gerard's work to the United States where it influenced American Indigenous medicine. Francisco Hernández , physician to Philip II of Spain spent the years 1571–1577 gathering information in Mexico and then wrote Rerum Medicarum Novae Hispaniae Thesaurus , many versions of which have been published including one by Francisco Ximénez . Both Hernandez and Ximenez fitted Aztec ethnomedicinal information into

2279-769: The population relies on traditional medicine for their primary health care needs. Traditional medicine is a form of alternative medicine . Practices known as traditional medicines include traditional European medicine , traditional Chinese medicine , traditional Korean medicine , traditional African medicine , Ayurveda , Siddha medicine , Unani , ancient Iranian medicine , traditional Iranian medicine , medieval Islamic medicine , Muti , Ifá and Rongoā . Scientific disciplines that study traditional medicine include herbalism , ethnomedicine , ethnobotany , and medical anthropology . The WHO notes, however, that "inappropriate use of traditional medicines or practices can have negative or dangerous effects" and that " further research

2332-578: The study of herbs dates back 5,000 years to the ancient Sumerians , who described well-established medicinal uses for plants. In Ancient Egyptian medicine , the Ebers papyrus from c. 1552 BC records a list of folk remedies and magical medical practices. The Old Testament also mentions herb use and cultivation in regards to Kashrut . Many herbs and minerals used in Ayurveda were described by ancient Indian herbalists such as Charaka and Sushruta during

2385-406: The treatment of an illness. Specific plant characteristics such as plant shape, smell, color, and taste could aid in determining how the plant could be used as a remedy. The Meskwaki tribe found they could use the juice from Arum maculatum for snakebites. This was inferred from the milky appearance of the juice from the plant which is said to resemble snake venom, and the plant's shape resembled

2438-521: Was Ictitherium viverrinum , which was similar to a jackal . The dog-like hyenas were numerous; in some Miocene fossil sites, the remains of Ictitherium and other dog-like hyenas outnumber those of all other carnivores combined. The decline of the dog-like hyenas began 5–7 million years ago during a period of climate change, exacerbated by canids crossing the Bering land bridge to Eurasia. One species, Chasmaporthetes ossifragus , managed to cross

2491-584: Was also found in the spotted hyena, striped hyena and brown hyena, which would have led to the evolution of the scavenging in these species. Mutations and variants were also found in digestion-related genes ( ASH1L , PTPN5 , PKP3 , AQP10 ). One of these digestion-related genes has variants also related to enhanced bone mineralisation ( PTPN5 ), while other have also a role in inflammatory skin responses ( PKP3 ). In aardwolves, expansion of genes related to toxin response were found ( Lipocalin and UDP Glucuronosyltransferase gene families), which would have led to

2544-535: Was an early pharmacopoeia and introduced clinical trials . The Canon was translated into Latin in the 12th century and remained a medical authority in Europe until the 17th century. The Unani system of traditional medicine is also based on the Canon . Translations of the early Roman-Greek compilations were made into German by Hieronymus Bock whose herbal, published in 1546, was called Kreuter Buch . The book

2597-519: Was apparently written in haste and influenced by the European occupation of the previous 30 years. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún 's used ethnographic methods to compile his codices that then became the Historia General de las Cosas de Nueva España , published in 1793. Castore Durante published his Herbario Nuovo in 1585 describing medicinal plants from Europe and the East and West Indies . It

2650-547: Was one kind of nattuvaidyam practised in south India. The others were kalarichikitsa (related to bone setting and musculature), marmachikitsa (vital spot massaging), ottamoolivaidyam (single dose medicine or single time medication), chintamanivaidyam and so on. When the medical system was revamped in twentieth century India, many of the practices and techniques specific to some of these diverse nattuvaidyam were included in Ayurveda. A home remedy (sometimes also referred to as

2703-636: Was the most widely used plant family for its medicinal properties. Nattuvaidyam was a set of indigenous medical practices that existed in India before the advent of allopathic or western medicine. These practices had different sets of principles and ideas of the body, health and disease. There were overlaps and borrowing of ideas, medicinal compounds used and techniques within these practices. Some of these practices had written texts in vernacular languages like Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, etc. while others were handed down orally through various mnemonic devices. Ayurveda

SECTION 50

#1732790897245

2756-538: Was translated into Dutch as Pemptades by Rembert Dodoens (1517–1585), and from Dutch into English by Carolus Clusius , (1526–1609), published by Henry Lyte in 1578 as A Nievve Herball . This became John Gerard 's (1545–1612) Herball or General Historie of Plantes . Each new work was a compilation of existing texts with new additions. Women's folk knowledge existed in undocumented parallel with these texts. Forty-four drugs, diluents, flavouring agents and emollients mentioned by Dioscorides are still listed in

2809-421: Was translated into German in 1609 and Italian editions were published for the next century. In 17th and 18th-century America, traditional folk healers, frequently women, used herbal remedies, cupping and leeching . Native American traditional herbal medicine introduced cures for malaria, dysentery, scurvy, non-venereal syphilis, and goiter problems. Many of these herbal and folk remedies continued on through

#244755