carnivores, carnivora

CARNIVORA

Carnivores

PHYLUM: Chordata	CLASS: Mammalia	SUBCLASS: Eutheria	ORDER: Carnivora
	Description of the order \| Families \| Origins \| Literature
	Description of the order The Carnivora is the result of a great radiation of mammals that ate meat. But not all meat eaters are in this order; carnivorous species can certainly be found among, for example, the marsupials, bats, primates, cetaceans, and others. It is also true that not all Carnivora are carnivorous; some, such as bears and raccoons, are decidedly omnivorous, and at least one, the panda, is primarily vegetarian. But the Carnivora are a clearly monophyletic group that is first known from the late Paleocene and whose primitive food habits were carnivorous. Most members of the Order Carnivora can be recognized by their enlarged fourth upper premolar and first lower molar, which together form an efficient shear for cutting meat and tendon. These teeth are referred to as the carnassial pair. The exceptions are a few forms, such as bears, raccoons, and seals, in which these teeth are secondarily modified. Carnivores tend to be medium-sized animals; too small and they couldn't find enough within their capacity to kill; too large and they wouldn't be able to satisfy their appetites. Most have very acute senses. Vision and hearing are excellent in many carnivores, and the sense of smell is often remarkable. Most have relatively large brains. Many are excellent runners. A few are good long-distance runners, but more commonly, Carnivora are rapid sprinters that use stealth to approach their prey, then overcome it with a short, violent rush. A few, like bears and raccoons, seem relatively slow or clumsy, but even these species are capable of remarkable bursts of speed. Even the long-distance runners don't have the highly modified and relatively inflexible skeletons and movement patterns of cursorial herbivores like artiodactyls; this is probably related to the often unpredictable demands that catching and killing large prey place on their skeletons. The skulls of Carnivora are highly varied in form. Most have a well-defined, transverse glenoid fossa, and the dominant motion of the jaw is in the dorsal-ventral direction. The primary muscle powering the jaw is the temporal, and sagittal crest associated with the temporal is commonly a conspicuous part of the surface of the skull. Carnivores also have a strong zygomatic arch and a relatively large braincase. The auditory bullae and the turbinals also tend to be large and complex. Besides usually having carnassials, almost all Carnivora retain the primitive number of incisors (3/3); an exception is the sea otter, which has 2/3. The outer (3rd) incisor is often relatively large and canine-like. The canines are large and conical. The number of teeth behind the carnassials varies considerably, from 1/1 in some cats to 4/4 in bears (would be more in some pinnipeds, but they have no carnassials). All teeth are rooted and diphyodont. All Carnivora have a simple stomach. Marine carnivores are a special group, referred to as the "pinnipeds" (terrestrial carnivores, in contrast, are called the "fissipeds"). All pinnipeds are large, perhaps because water conducts heat well and large animals have a low surface area to body mass ratio, which minimizes heat loss due to conduction. Their bodies are insulated by a thick layer of fat called blubber. In all species, the external ears are small or absent, the external genitalia and nipples are hidden in slits or depressions in the body, and the tail is very small. The forelimbs and hindlimbs are transformed into paddles. In both, the proximal limb elements (humerus and femur) remain within the body, and other aspects of the limbs, limb girdles, and spine are highly specialized for swimming. Most species have a relatively short rostrum, and the orbits are large. The cheek teeth are usually homodont (no differentiation along the toothrow), and the teeth are usually shaped like simple cones. These animals are capable of diving to extreme depths (600 m in the case of the Weddell seal) and remaining under water for astonishing periods (over an hour, although most dives are much shorter). It is easier to maintain small pinnipeds in the lab than cetaceans, and consequently their physiological adaptations for diving have been studied extensively. While most systematists agree that terrestrial carnivores fall into two groups, the dog-like (caniform) and cat-like (feliform) families, there is considerable disagreementover the relationships of carnivore families, especially with respect to the pinnipeds. Currently, the most strongly supported scheme places pinnipeds as a monophyletic group within the caniform lineage, most closely related to bears, red pandas, and raccoons. The sister group to this clade is the family Mustelidae, and the canids appear as an early offshoot of the caniforms. Some authorities, however, consider the pinnipeds to be monophyletic and basal to all living carnivores (feliform and caniform), and place it in a separate order, the Pinnipedia. Others suggest that marine species were derived at least twice, with one lineage (perhaps derived from ursids) leading to the sea lions (and walruses, although even this is debated) and the other (from mustelids) to the true seals. The carnivores are distinguished from all other mammals by one shared characteristic, the posession of the four so-called carnassial teeth in the front of the jaw. Many species in other orders have been meat eaters, but only the members of the Carnivores stem from ancestors whose fourth upper molar and first lower molar were adapted to shear through flesh. Only the most predacious of the modern species retain this pair of slicing teeth, collectively called the carnassials. The earliest carnivores probably arose from a small insectivorous mammal early in the Cenozoic era, a time of rapid differentiation of mammal, insect and flowering plant species, approximately 65 million years ago. The earliest know representatives of carnivores, found rarely as fossilized bones and most often as teeth, are classified in the super-family Miacidae, which are morphologically seperable into two lineages, the viverravines and the miacines. Both members of the lineage display the dental features characteristic of carnivores, shearing teeth and a specialized jaw joint. Members of the Miacidae were small mammals with spreading paws, a long body and tail, with short loose-jointed and flexible limbs. Miacids had relatively small brains and many primative features in the skull. Their paws were wide and their digits were spread apart, with the first appearing to be opposed, suggesting an ability to climb. They were likely forest dwellers and rarely fossilized due to rapid body decomposition and the absence of sedimentary materials in the forest environment. Families Superfamily Canoidea: Family Canidae, Family Ursidae, Family Otariidae, Family Odobenidae, Family Procyonidae, Family Mustelidae, Family Phocidae Superfamily Feloidea: Family Viverridae, Family Herpestidae, Family Hyaenidae, Family Felidae The carnivores are composed of 231 species, in 93 genera, and 7 Families; the Felidae (cats), with 17 genera and 36 species; the Canidae (dogs), with 14 genera and 34 species, the Ursidae (bears), with 6 genera and 9 species; the Procyonidae (raccoon), with 8 genera and 17 species; the Mustelidae (weasel), with 26 genera and 67 species; the Viverridae (civit), with 37 genera and 66 species; and the Hyaenidae (hyena), with 3 genera and 4 species. Wild carnivores occur naturally throughout the world, with the exception of Australia, New Guinea, New Zeland, Antarctica and a number of oceanic islands, although adapting to every major habitat. The smallest living carnivore is the least weasel (), which has an overall length of about 8.5 inches and weight of 1.5 ounces. The largest is the grizzly bear or brown bear, weighing up to 1700 pounds with an overall body length of up to 9 feet. Origins During the late Eocene and earliest Oligocene, the major groups of modern carnivores apparently developed in a burst of diversification, 54 to 26 million years ago. This rapid diversification appears to be in response to the proliferation of more diverse vegetable foods, resulting in the radiation of the carnivorans' prey. The two groups of maicids present in the Eocene are believed to represent the beginning of the differentation between the two major groups of carnivores, the Arctoidea and the Aeluroidea. The Arctoidea, (Canidae, Amphicyonidae, Ursidae, Otariidae & Obodenidae, Procyonidae, Mustelidae, Phocidae) the bear-like carnivorans, include the bears, raccoon, seals, walrus, pandas, weasels, badgers, skunks and their relatives. The Aeluroidea (Felidae, Hyaenidae, Viverridae, Nimravidae), the cat-like canrivorans, include the cats, hyenas, genets, civits and mongooses. During the diversification within each subdivision, some similarities in morphologies and life-styles developed reflecting some parallels in the range of adaptations within each group. Two extinct groups of carnivorans have been identified in the fossil record; the Nimravidae, an extinct group of cat-like carnivorans, many of which were saber-toothed; and the Amphicyonidae, the bear-dogs and relatives, which became extinct in the Pliocene. The phyletic position of the dogs is unclear, although they are uaually allied with the Arctoidea, with the features indicating this alliance all primative traits that were present in the early ancestors of the carnivorans. These features could be remaining in the Canidae after a relatively early split from the rest of the Carnivora. Also, the retention of these features is scattered throughout the arctoids, so that close relationships between canids and any particular family within the arctoids is not evidenced. It is even possible that the dogs, wolves, foxes and their relatives evolved as an independent line from their own maicid ancestor and might deserve recognition as a third major subdivision of the modern Carnivora. The first cats in the Family Felidae appeared during the Miocene (26 to 7 million years ago), and by about 10 million years ago modern cats had evolved. Fossilized evidence indicates that true saber-toothed cats began to emerge during the Pliocene (7 million to 2 million years ago), where they flourished in the Pleistocene (2 million to 10,000 years ago). The last, and best known, saber-toothed cat was Smilodon fatalis. About the size of a large lion, Smilodon was an Ice Age cat of North and South America. Smilodon became extinct about 10,000 years ago, at the same time as other Ice Age mammals including mammoths, dire wolves, and many species of rhino and horse. The first humans to inhabit North America apparently hunted the same prey species as the saber-toothed cats and many have scavenged the remains of these kills. The carnivores are the dominate flesh-eating mammals (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), although hunting as a way of life is shared by others such as seals and some whales. In fact, the words Carnivora and Carnivore mean "meat-eater." But this characteristic of the group can be misleading, because a few species (such as a few bears) do not eat flesh. The group is distributed throughout the world, apart from some islands and the antarctic. Most carnivores are terrestrial (Procyon lotor) or arboreal, two genera, Potos and Arctictis have prehensile tails. All are able to swim, with the polar bear (Ursus maritimus and the river otters (Lutra, Aonyx, Pteronura) being semiaquatic, and the sea otter (Enhydra spending practically its entire life in the water. Social patterns vary widely, according to the species, although most are fiercely territorial (Nasua narica). The two most prominent groups, the cats and their relations, and the dogs and related species, have developed different hunting techniques. Dogs, which are usually social and hunt in packs, tend to run down their prey, whereas most cats are solitaty and use stealth to ambush its prey, with the exception of the lion. Phylogeny Family Canidae (dogs) Genus Alopex, Alopex lagopus (Arctic fox) , Genus Atelocynus , Atelocynus microtis (small-eared dog) Genus Canis , Canis adustus (side-striped jackal) Canus aureus (golden jackal) , Canis latrans (coyote) , Canis lupus (gray wolf) , Canis mesomelas ,Canis rufus (red wolf) , Canis simensis (Simion jackal) , Genus Cerdocyon , Cerdocyon thous (crab-eating fox) Genus Chrysocyon , Chrysocoyn brachyurus (maned wolf) Genus Cuon , Cuon alpinus (Dhole) Genus Dusicyon , Dusicyon australis (Falkland Island wolf) , Genus Lycaon , Lycaon pictus (African hunting dog) Genus Nyctereutes , Nyctereutes procyonoides (raccoon dog) Genus Otocyon , Otocyon megalotis (bat-eared fox) Genus Pseudalopex , Pseudalopex culpaeus (Colpeo fox) Pseudalopex griseus (Argentine gray fox) Pseudalopex gymnocercus (South American fox) , Pseudalopex sechurae (South American fox) , Pseudalopex vetulus (Hoary fox) Genus Speothos , Speothyos venaticus (bush dog) Genus Urocyon , Urocyon cinereoargenteus (gray fox) Urocyon littoralis (gray fox) Genus Vulpes , Vulpes bengalensis (Indian or Bengal fox) Vulpes cana (Blanford's fox) , Vulpes chama (cape fox) , Vulpes corsac (Corsac fox) , Vulpes ferrilata (Tibetan sand fox) , Vulpes pallida (pale fox) , Vulpes rueppelli (sand fox) , Vulpes velox (swift fox) , Vulpes vulpes (red fox) , Vulpes zerda (Fennec fox) , Family Felidae (cats) Subfamily Acinonychinae Genus Acinonyx , Acinonyx jubatus (cheetah) Subfamily Felinae Genus Caracal Caracal caracal (caracal) Genus Catopuma Catopuma badia (bay cat) Catopuma temmincki (Temminck's golden cat) Genus Felis Felis bieti (Chinese desert cat) Felis catus (domestic cat) Felis chaus (jungle cat) Felis margarita (sand cat) Felis nigripes (black-footed cat) Felis sylvestris (wild cat) Genus Herpailurus Herpailurus yagouaroundi (jaguarondi) Genus Leopardus Leopardus pardalis (ocelot) Leopardus tigrina (tiger cat) Leopardus wiedii (margay) Genus Leptailurus Leprailurus serval (serval) Genus Lynx Lynx canadensis Lynx lynx (Eurasian lynx) Lynx pardinus (Iberian lynx) Lynx rufus (bobcat) Genus Mayailurus Mayailurus iriomotensis (Iriomote cat) Genus Oncifelis Oncifelis colocolo (pampas cat) Oncifelis geoffreyi (Geoffrey's cat) Oncifelis guigna (kodkod) Genus Oreailurus Oreailurus jacobita (mountain cat) Genus Otocolobus Otocolobus manul (Pallas' cat) Genus Prionailurus Prionailurus bengalensis (leopard cat) Prionailurus planiceps (flat-headed cat) Prionailurus rubiginosus (rusty-spotted cat) Prionailurus viverrinus (fishing cat) Genus Profelis Profelis aurata (African golden cat) Genus Puma Puma concolor (puma) Subfamily Pantherinae enus Neofelis Neofelis nebulosa (clouded leopard) Genus Panthera Panthera leo (lion) Panthera onca (jaguar) Panthera pardus (leopard) Panthera tigris (tiger) Genus Pardofelis Pardofelis marmorata (marbled cat) Genus Uncia Uncia uncia (snow leopard) Family Herpestidae Subfamily Galidiinae Genus Galidia Galidia elegans Genus Galidictis Galidictis fasciata Galidictis grandidieri Genus Mungotictis Mungotictis decemlineata Genus Salanoia Salanoia concolor Subfamily Herpestinae Genus Atilax Atilax paludinosus Genus Bdeogale Bdeogale crassicauda Bdeogale jacksoni Bdeogale nigripes Genus Crossarchus Crossarchus alexandri Crossarchus ansorgei Crossarchus obscurus Genus Cynictis Cynictis penicillata Genus Dologale Dologale dybowskii Genus Galerella Galerella flavescens Galerella pulverulenta Galerella sanguinea Galerella swalius Genus Helogale Helogale hirtula Helogale parvula Genus Herpestes Herpestes brachyurus Herpestes edwardsii Herpestes ichneumon Herpestes javanicus Herpestes naso Herpestes palustris Herpestes semitorquatus Herpestes smithii Herpestes urva Herpestes vitticollis Genus Ichneumia Ichneumia albicauda Genus Liberiictis Liberiictis kuhni Genus Mungos Mungos gambianus Mungos mungo Genus Paracynictis Paracynictis selousi Genus Rhynchogale Rhynchogale melleri Genus Suricata Suricata suricatta Family Hyaenidae Subfamily Hyaeninae Genus Crocuta Crocuta crocuta Genus Hyaena Hyaena hyaena Genus Parahyaena Parahyaena brunnea Subfamily Protelinae Genus Proteles Proteles cristatus Family Mustelidae Subfamily Lutrinae Genus Amblonyx Amblonyx cinereus Genus Aonyx Aonyx capensis Aonyx congicus Genus Enhydra Enhydra lutris Genus Lontra Lontra canadensis Lontra felina Lontra longicaudis Lontra provocax Genus Lutra Lutra lutra Lutra maculicollis Lutra sumatrana Genus Lutrogale Lutrogale perspicillata Genus Pteronura Pteronura brasiliensis Subfamily Melinae Genus Arctonyx Arctonyx collaris Genus Meles Meles meles Genus Melogale Melogale everetti Melogale moschata Melogale orientalis Melogale personata Genus Mydaus Mydaus javanensis Mydaus marchei Subfamily Mellivorinae Genus Mellivora Mellivora capensis Subfamily Mephitinae Genus Conepatus Conepatus chinga Conepatus humboldtii Conepatus leuconotus Conepatus mesoleucus Conepatus semistriatus Genus Mephitis Mephitis macroura Mephitis mephitis Genus Spilogale Spilogale putorius Spilogale pygmaea Subfamily Mustelinae Genus Eira Eira barbara Genus Galictis Galictis cuja Galictis vittata Genus Gulo Gulo gulo Genus Ictonyx Ictonyx libyca Ictonyx striatus Genus Lyncodon Lyncodon patagonicus Genus Martes Martes americana Martes flavigula Martes foina Martes gwatkinsii Martes martes Martes melampus Martes pennanti Martes zibellina Genus Mustela Mustela africana Mustela altaica Mustela erminea Mustela eversmannii Mustela felipei Mustela frenata Mustela kathiah Mustela lutreola Mustela lutreolina Mustela nigripes Mustela nivalis Mustela nudipes Mustela putorius Mustela sibirica Mustela strigidorsa Mustela vison Genus Poecilogale Poecilogale albinucha Genus Vormela Vormela peregusna Subfamily Taxidiinae GenusTaxidea Taxidea taxus Subfamily Odobenidae Genus Odobenus Odobenus rosmarus Subfamily Otariidae Genus Arctocephalus Arctocephalus australis Arctocephalus forsteri Arctocephalus galapagoensis Arctocephalus gazella Arctocephalus philippii Arctocephalus pusillus Arctocephalus townsendi Arctocephalus tropicalis Genus Callorhinus Callorhinus ursinus Genus Eumetopias Eumetopias jubatus Genus Neophoca Neophoca cinerea Genus Otaria Otaria byronia Genus Phocarctos Phocarctos hookeri Genus Zalophus Zalophus californianus Subfamily Phocidae Genus Cystophora Cystophora cristata Genus Erignathus Erignathus barbatus Genus Halichoerus Halichoerus grypus Genus Hydrurga Hydrurga leptonyx Genus Leptonychotes Leptonychotes weddellii Genus Lobodon Lobodon carcinophagus Genus Mirounga Mirounga angustirostris Mirounga leonina Genus Monachus Monachus monachus Monachus schauinslandi Monachus tropicalis Genus Ommatophoca Ommatophoca rossii Genus Phoca Phoca caspica Phoca fasciata Phoca groenlandica Phoca hispida Phoca largha Phoca sibirica Phoca vitulina Family Procyonidae Subfamily Potosinae Genus Bassaricyon (olingos) Bassaricyon alleni Bassaricyon beddardi Bassaricyon gabbii Bassaricyon lasius Bassaricyon pauli Genus Potos Potos flavus (kinkajou) Subfamily Procyoninae Genus Bassariscus Bassariscus astutus (ringtail) Bassariscus sumichrasti (Central American cacomistle) Genus Nasua (coatimundi) Nasua narica Nasua nasua Genus Nasuella Nasuella olivacea (mountain coati) Genus Procyon (raccoon) Procyon cancrivorus (crab-eating raccoon) Procyon gloveralleni Procyon insularis Pocyon lotor Procyon maynardi Procyon minor Procyon pygmaeus Family Ursidae (bears) Subfamily Ailurinae Genus Ailuropoda Ailuropoda melanoleuca (giant panda) Genus Ailurus Ailurus fulgens (lesser panda) Subfamily Ursinae Genus Helarctos Helarctos malayanus (Malayan sun bear) Genus Melursus Melursus ursinus (sloth bear) Genus Tremarctos Tremarctos ornatus (spectacled bear) Genus Ursus Ursus americanus (American black bear) Ursus arctos (brown or grizzly bear) Ursus maritimus (polar bear) Ursus thibetanus (Asiatic black bear) Family Viverridae Subfamily Cryptoproctinae Genus Cryptoprocta Cryptoprocta ferox Subfamily Euplerinae Genus Eupleres Eupleres goudotii Genus Fossa Fossa fossana Subfamily Hemigalinae Genus Chrotogale Chrotogale owstoni Genus Cynogale Cynogale bennettii Genus Diplogale Diplogale hosei Genus Hemigalus Hemigalus derbyanus Subfamily Nandiniinae Genus Nandinia Nandinia binotata Subfamily Paradoxurinae Genus Arctictis Arctictis binturong Genus Arctogalidia Arctogalidia trivirgata Genus Macrogalidia Macrogalidia musschenbroekii Genus Paguma Paguma larvata Genus Paradoxurus Paradoxurus hermaphroditus Paradoxurus jerdoni Paradoxurus zeylonensis Subfamily Viverrinae Genus Civettictis Civettictis civetta Genus Genetta Genetta abyssinica (Abyssinian genet) Genetta angolensis Genetta crisata (crested genet) Genetta genetta Genetta johnstoni (Johnson's genet) Genetta isabelae (Ibiza genet) Genetta maculata Genetta servalina Genetta thierryi Genetta tigrina Genetta victoriae Genus Osbornictis Osbornictis piscivora Genus Poiana Poiana richardsonii Genus Prionodon Prionodon linsang Prionodon pardicolor Genus Viverra Viverra civettina Viverra megaspila Viverra tangalunga Viverra zibetha Genus Viverricula Viverricula indica Literature Flynn, J. J. 1996. Carnivoran phylogeny and rates of evolution: morphological, taxic, and molecular. Pp. 542-581 in Gittleman, J. L. (ed.). Carnivore Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution, Vol 2. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca, NY. Stains, H. J. 1984. Carnivores. Pp. 491-521 in Anderson, S. and J. K. Jones, Jr. (eds). Orders and Families of Recent Mammals of the World. John Wiley and Sons, N.Y. xii+686 pp. Savage, R. J. G. and M. R. Long. 1986. Mammal Evolution, an Illustrated Guide. Facts of File Publications, New York. 259 pp. Vaughan, T. A. 1986. Mammalogy. Third Edition. Saunders College Publishing, Fort Worth. vii+576 pp. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder. 1993. Mammal Species of the World, A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. 2nd edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. xviii+1206 pp.
	Part of the above information was adapted from: The animal diversity web: http://www.oit.itd.umich.edu/bio108/ and THE CYBER ZOOMOBILE

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