Herpestides
Encyclopedia
Herpestides is an extinct genus
of terrestrial
carnivore
the family
Hyaenidae, endemic to North Africa
and Southern Europe
during the Early Miocene
subepoch (22.4—20 mya) existing for approximately .
, Anictis
, Asiavorator
, Haplogale, Mioprionodon, Moghradictis
, Nandinia, Palaeoprionodon, Proailurus
, Shandgolictis, Stenogale, Stenoplesictis
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of terrestrial
Terrestrial animal
Terrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land , as compared with aquatic animals, which live predominantly or entirely in the water , or amphibians, which rely on a combination of aquatic and terrestrial habitats...
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...
the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Hyaenidae, endemic to North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
and Southern Europe
Southern Europe
The term Southern Europe, at its most general definition, is used to mean "all countries in the south of Europe". However, the concept, at different times, has had different meanings, providing additional political, linguistic and cultural context to the definition in addition to the typical...
during the Early Miocene
Early Miocene
The Early Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages....
subepoch (22.4—20 mya) existing for approximately .
Taxonomy
Herpestides was named by de Beaumont (1967). It is not extant. It was assigned to Aeluroidea by Hunt (1989); and to Viverridae by Flynn (1998) and Morlo et al. (2007).Sister genera
AfricanictisAfricanictis
Africantis is an extinct species of carnivorous cat-like mammals belonging to the superfamily Aeluroidea, endemic to Africa from the Miocene 23.03—11.610 Ma, existing for approximately ....
, Anictis
Anictis
Anictis is an extinct species of carnivorous cat-like mammal belonging to the superfamily Aeluroidea, endemic to Europe living from the Oligocene 33.9—28.4 Ma, existing for approximately ....
, Asiavorator
Asiavorator
Asiavorator is an extinct species of carnivorous, cat-like civet endemic to Asia.The teeth of Asiavorator suggest that the beasts were omnivorous or more precisely, ranged from hypercarnivorous to mesocarnivorous.-Taxonomy:...
, Haplogale, Mioprionodon, Moghradictis
Moghradictis
Moghradictis is an extinct species of carnivorous cat-like mammals belonging to the superfamily Aeluroidea, endemic to North Africa from the Miocene 23.03—15.97 Ma, existing for approximately ....
, Nandinia, Palaeoprionodon, Proailurus
Proailurus
Proailurus was a prehistoric carnivore that lived in Europe and Asia approximately 25 million years ago in the Late Oligocene and Miocene. One recent phylogeny places it as a basal member of the Feloidea, the superfamily that includes mongooses, civets, hyenas, and cats; but other studies suggest...
, Shandgolictis, Stenogale, Stenoplesictis
Stenoplesictis
Stenoplesictis is an extinct genus of carnivorous cat-like mammals belonging to the superfamily Aeluroidea, endemic to Europe from the Oligocene 33.9—28.4 Ma, existing for approximately ....
.