Oligobunis
Encyclopedia
Oligobunis is an extinct genus
of mustelids, which existed during the Miocene
period.
The genus was first described by E. D. Cope in 1881. Cope assigned the genus to the family Mustelidae
, and J. A. Baskin assigned it to the subfamily Oligobuninae
in 1998. Two species have been identified in the genus: O. crassivultus and O. floridanus. Three more - O. gemmarosae, O. lepidus, and O. vantasselensis - were later assigned to the genus Promartes
. Oligobunis floridanus was a medium-sized badger type mustelid carnivore that filled the niche of small cats during the "cat gap" of the early to middle Miocene in North America. Its fossils have been discovered in Florida, Nebraska, and Oregon.
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 mustelids, which existed during the Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
period.
The genus was first described by E. D. Cope in 1881. Cope assigned the genus to the family Mustelidae
Mustelidae
Mustelidae , commonly referred to as the weasel family, are a family of carnivorous mammals. Mustelids are diverse and the largest family in the order Carnivora, at least partly because in the past it has been a catch-all category for many early or poorly differentiated taxa...
, and J. A. Baskin assigned it to the subfamily Oligobuninae
Oligobuninae
Oligobuninae is an extinct subfamily of the Mustelidae family.The subfamily was described by J. A. Baskin in 1998, who assigned seven genera to it - Brachypsalis, Megalictis, Oligobunis, Paroligobunis, Potamotherium, Promartes, and Zodiolestes - representing thirteen separate species....
in 1998. Two species have been identified in the genus: O. crassivultus and O. floridanus. Three more - O. gemmarosae, O. lepidus, and O. vantasselensis - were later assigned to the genus Promartes
Promartes
Promartes is a genus of mustelids, now extinct, which existed during the Miocene period.The genus was first described in 1942, by E. S. Riggs, who identified the sister genus Zodiolestes at the same time, and assigned to the family Mustelidae. In 1998 it was assigned to the subfamily Oligobuninae....
. Oligobunis floridanus was a medium-sized badger type mustelid carnivore that filled the niche of small cats during the "cat gap" of the early to middle Miocene in North America. Its fossils have been discovered in Florida, Nebraska, and Oregon.