Quercygale is an extinct genus of Miacidae, primitive carnivores that lived during the Paleocene

Paleocene

The Paleocene or Palaeocene, the "early recent", is a geologic epoch that lasted from about . It is the first epoch of the Palaeogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era...

 and Eocene

Eocene

The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...

 epochs. The genus contains three species: Q. angustidens (Filhol, 1872), from Quercy (France), Q. hastingsae (Davies, 1884), from Headon Bedes, England and Q. helvetica, from Switzerland (Rütimeyer, 1862). Considered as the most advance miacoid, Quercygale seems to have been an immigrant from Asia, after the Grand Coupure. Its correct status is dubious, but it could have been close the base of the Carnivora

Carnivora

The diverse order Carnivora |Latin]] carō "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal...

, predating the split between Feliformia

Feliformia

The Feliformia are a suborder within the order Carnivora and includes cats , hyenas, mongooses, civets and related taxa. The other suborder of Carnivora is Caniformia...

 and Caniformia

Caniformia

Caniformia, or Canoidea , is a suborder within the order Carnivora. They typically possess a long snout and non-retractile claws . The Pinnipedia evolved from caniform ancestors and are accordingly assigned to this group...

.

Sources

• "Basicranial morphology and phylogenetic position of the upper Eocene carnivoramorphan Quercygale".
• zipcodezoo.com
• www.paleodb.org
• findarticles.com