Leporidae (/lΙΛpΙΛrΙͺdiΛ, -daΙͺ/) is the family of rabbits and hares (Lepus), containing over 70 species of extant mammals in all. Together with the pikas, the Leporidae constitute the mammalian order Lagomorpha. Leporidae differ from pikas in that they have short, furry tails and elongated ears and hind legs.
The Mustelidae (/mΚΛstΙlΙͺdiΛ/;[2] from Latin mustela, weasel) are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, polecats, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids (/ΛmΚstΙͺlΙͺdz/[3]), they form the largest family in the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora with about 66 to 70 species in nine subfamilies.[4]
Viverridae is a family of small to medium-sized feliform mammals, comprising 14 genera with 33 species. This family was named and first described by John Edward Gray in 1821.[3] Viverrids occur all over Africa, in southern Europe, and in South and Southeast Asia on both sides of the Wallace Line.[4]
Procyonidae (/ΛproΚsiΛΛΙnΙͺdiΛ/ PROH-see-ON-i-dee)[1] is a New World family of the order Carnivora.[2] It includes the raccoons, ringtails, cacomistles, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, and olinguitos. Procyonids inhabit a wide range of environments and are generally omnivorous.
Suinae is a subfamily of artiodactyl mammals that includes several of the extant members of Suidae and their closest relatives β the domestic pig and related species, such as babirusas. Several extinct species within the Suidae are classified in subfamilies other than Suinae. However, the classification of the extinct members of the Suoidea β the larger group that includes the Suidae, the peccary family (Tayassuidae), and related extinct species β is controversial, and different classifications vary in the number of subfamilies within Suidae and their contents.[1] Some classifications, such as the one proposed by paleontologist Jan van der Made in 2010, even exclude from Suinae some extant taxa of Suidae, placing these excluded taxa in other subfamilies.[2]
The European wildcat (Felis silvestris) is a small wildcat species native to continental Europe, Great Britain, Ireland, Turkey and the Caucasus. Its fur is brownish to grey with stripes on the forehead and on the sides and has a bushy tail with a black tip. It reaches a head-to-body length of up to 65 cm (26 in) with a 34.5 cm (13.6 in) long tail, and weighs up to 7.5 kg (17 lb).
The fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) is a medium-sized wild cat of South and Southeast Asia. It has a deep yellowish-grey fur with black lines and spots. Adults have a head-to-body length of 57 to 78 cm (22 to 31 in), with a 20 to 30 cm (8 to 12 in) long tail. Males are larger than females, weighing 8 to 17 kg (18 to 37 lb), while females average 5 to 9 kg (11 to 20 lb). It lives mostly in the vicinity of wetlands, along rivers, streams, oxbow lakes, in swamps and mangroves where it preys mostly on fish. Other prey items include birds, insects, small rodents, molluscs, reptiles including snakes, amphibians and carrion of cattle. The fishing cat is thought to be primarily nocturnal. It is a good swimmer and can swim long distances, even underwater.
The cougar (Puma concolor) (/ΛkuΛΙ‘Ιr/, KOO-gΙr), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount, and panther, is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North, Central and South America, making it the most widely distributed wild, terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere, and one of the most widespread in the world. Its range spans Yukon, British Columbia and Alberta in Canada, the Rocky Mountains and areas in the western United States. Further south, its range extends through Mexico to the Amazon rainforest and the southern Andes Mountains in Patagonia. It is an adaptable generalist species, occurring in most American habitat types. It prefers habitats with dense underbrush and rocky areas for stalking but also lives in open areas.
The serval (Leptailurus serval) is a wild small cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, where it inhabits grasslands, wetlands, moorlands and bamboo thickets. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in range countries.
The ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches 40β50 cm (16β20 in) at the shoulders and weighs between 7 and 15.5 kg (15 and 34 lb) on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Margarita. Carl Linnaeus scientifically described it in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized.
The Asian golden cat (Catopuma temminckii) is a medium-sized wild cat native to the northeastern Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and China. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2025, and is threatened by poaching and habitat destruction, since Southeast Asian forests are undergoing the world's fastest regional deforestation.[1]
The Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) or Canadian lynx is one of the four living species in the genus Lynx. It is a medium-sized wild cat characterized by long, dense fur, triangular ears with black tufts at the tips, and broad, snowshoe-like paws. Its hindlimbs are longer than the forelimbs, so its back slopes downward to the front. The Canada lynx stands 48β56 cm (19β22 in) tall at the shoulder and weighs between 5 and 17 kg (11 and 37 lb). It is a good swimmer and an agile climber.
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is a large cat and a member of the genus Panthera native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is traditionally classified into nine recent subspecies, though some recognise only two subspecies, mainland Asian tigers and the island tigers of the Sunda Islands.
Equidae (commonly known as the horse family) is the taxonomic family of horses and related animals, including asses, zebras, and many extinct species known only from fossils. The family evolved more than 50 million years ago, in the Eocene epoch, from a small, multi-toed ungulate into larger, single-toed animals. All extant species are in the genus Equus, which originated in North America. Equidae belongs to the order Perissodactyla, which includes the extant tapirs and rhinoceros, and several extinct families. It is more specifically grouped within the superfamily Equoidea, the only other family being the extinct Palaeotheriidae.
Basilosaurus (meaning "king lizard") is a genus of large, predatory, prehistoric archaeocete whale from the late Eocene, approximately 41.3 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). First described in 1834, it was the first archaeocete and prehistoric whale known to science.[2] Fossils attributed to the type species B. cetoides were discovered in the southeastern United States. The generic name, meaning "king lizard", was given due to the initial misconception about the fossil material as that of a giant reptile. The animal was later found to be an early marine mammal, prompting attempts at renaming the creature, which failed as the rules of zoological nomenclature dictate using the original name given. The second species named in 1904, B. isis, lived in the region currently known as the Mediterranean Sea, with fossils found in North Africa and Jordan.
Pakicetus (meaning 'whale from Pakistan') is an extinct genus of amphibious cetacean of the family Pakicetidae, which was endemic to South Asia during the Ypresian (early Eocene) period, about 50 million years ago.[2] It was a wolf-like mammal,[3] about 1β2 m (3 ft 3 in β 6 ft 7 in) long,[4] and lived in and around water where it ate fish and other animals. The name Pakicetus comes from the fact that the first fossils of this extinct amphibious whale were discovered in Pakistan. The vast majority of paleontologists regard it as the most basal whale, representing a transitional stage between land mammals and whales. It belongs to the even-toed ungulates with the closest living non-cetacean relative being the hippopotamus.[3]
The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is one of eight extant species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest species of cetacean. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries, and as such, is the most familiar porpoise to whale watchers. This porpoise often ventures up rivers, and has been seen hundreds of kilometres from the sea. The harbour porpoise may be polytypic, with geographically distinct populations representing distinct races: P. p. phocoena in the North Atlantic and West Africa, P. p. relicta in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, an unnamed population in the northwestern Pacific and P. p. vomerina in the northeastern Pacific.[3]
The Amazon river dolphin (Inia geoffrensis), also known as the boto, bufeo or pink river dolphin, is a species of toothed whale endemic to South America and is classified in the family Iniidae. Three subspecies are currently recognized: I. g. geoffrensis (Amazon river dolphin), I. g. boliviensis (Bolivian river dolphin) and I. g. humboldtiana (Orinoco river dolphin). The position of the Araguaian river dolphin (I. araguaiaensis) within the clade is still unclear.[3][4] The three subspecies are distributed in the Amazon basin, the upper Madeira River in Bolivia, and the Orinoco basin, respectively.
The North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus Eubalaena,[1] all of which were formerly classified as a single species. Because of their docile nature, their slow surface-skimming feeding behaviors, their tendencies to stay close to the coast, and their high blubber content (which makes them float when they are killed, and which produces high yields of whale oil), right whales were once a preferred target for whalers. At present, they are among the most endangered whales in the world,[6] and they are protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and Canada's Species at Risk Act. There are an estimated 356[7] individuals in existence in the western North Atlantic Oceanβthey migrate between feeding grounds in the Labrador Sea and their winter calving areas off Georgia and Florida, an ocean area with heavy shipping traffic. In the eastern North Atlantic, on the other handβwith a total population reaching into the low teens at mostβscientists believe that they may already be functionally extinct.[6][dubious β discuss] Vessel strikes and entanglement in fixed fishing gear, which together account for nearly half of all North Atlantic right whale mortality since 1970,[8] are their two greatest threats to recovery.[9][10]
