Carnivora Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
Canidae
Felidae
Herpestidae
Hyaenidae
Mephitidae
Mustelidae
Nandiniidae
Odobenidae
Pinnipedia
Procyonidae
Ursidae
Viverridae
The diverse order Carnivora includes over 260 placental mammals. While the Giant Panda is an herbivore, nearly all others eat meat as their primary diet item: some (like the cat family) almost exclusively, others (like the bears and foxes) are more omnivorous. Members of Carnivora have a characteristic skull shape, and their dentition includes prominent canines and carnassials.
Older classification schemes divided the order into two suborders, Fissipedia, which included the families of primarily land carnivores, and suborder Pinnipedia, which included the true seals, eared seals, and walrus.
Newer classification schemes, which have been able to integrate the findings from molecular techniques for discovering genetic relationships, generally divide the Carnivora into suborders Feliformia and Caniformia, which includes the pinnipeds.
Recent molecular studies suggest that the endemic Carnivora of Madagascar, including three genera classed with the Viverridae and four genera of "mongooses" classed with the Herpestidae, are all descended from a single ancestor, and form a single sister taxon to the Herpestidae.
- Order Carnivora
- Suborder Feliformia ("Cat-like")
- Family Felidae: cats; 37 species in 4 genera
- Family Herpestidae: mongooses and allies; 35 species in 17 genera
- Family Viverridae: civets and allies; 35 species in 20 genera
- Family Hyaenidae: hyenas and Aardwolf; 4 species in 4 genera
- Family Nandiniidae: African palm civets
- Family Nimravidae: false sabre-tooths (extinct)
- Suborder Caniformia ("Dog-like")
- Family Canidae: dogs and allies; 35 species in 10 genera
- Family Procyonidae: raccoons and allies; 19 species in 7 genera
- Family Ursidae: bears; 8 species in 5 genera
- Family Mustelidae: weasels, ferrets, badgers, and otters; 55 species in 24 genera
- Family Mephitidae: skunks; 10 species in 3 genera
- Family Pinnipedia (Phocoidea)
- Suborder Feliformia ("Cat-like")
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