Carnivora
Overview
The diverse order
Carnivora (icon or ˌ; from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental
mammal
s. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore
" (often popularly applied to members of this group) can refer to any meat-eating animal. Carnivorans are the most diverse in size of any mammalian order, ranging from the least weasel
(Mustela nivalis), at as little as 25 gram (0.881849052627799 oz) and 11 centimetres (4.3 in), to the polar bear
(Ursus maritimus), which can weigh up to 1000 kilograms (2,204.6 lb), to the southern elephant seal
(Mirounga leonina), whose adult males weigh up to 5000 kilograms (11,023.1 lb) and measure up to 6.9 metres (22.6 ft) in length.
The first carnivoran was a carnivore
, and nearly all carnivorans today primarily eat meat.
Order (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
Carnivora (icon or ˌ; from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental
Eutheria
Eutheria is a group of mammals consisting of placental mammals plus all extinct mammals that are more closely related to living placentals than to living marsupials . They are distinguished from noneutherians by various features of the feet, ankles, jaws and teeth...
mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore
Carnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
" (often popularly applied to members of this group) can refer to any meat-eating animal. Carnivorans are the most diverse in size of any mammalian order, ranging from the least weasel
Least Weasel
The least weasel is the smallest member of the Mustelidae , native to Eurasia, North America and North Africa, though it has been introduced elsewhere. It is classed as Least Concern by the IUCN, due to its wide distribution and presumably large population...
(Mustela nivalis), at as little as 25 gram (0.881849052627799 oz) and 11 centimetres (4.3 in), to the polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
(Ursus maritimus), which can weigh up to 1000 kilograms (2,204.6 lb), to the southern elephant seal
Southern Elephant Seal
The Southern Elephant Seal is one of the two extant species of elephant seal. It is both the most massive pinniped and member of the order Carnivora living today...
(Mirounga leonina), whose adult males weigh up to 5000 kilograms (11,023.1 lb) and measure up to 6.9 metres (22.6 ft) in length.
The first carnivoran was a carnivore
Carnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
, and nearly all carnivorans today primarily eat meat.
