''Genetta nyakitongwer'' is a species of extinct genet known from

Koobi Fora Koobi Fora refers primarily to a region around Koobi Fora Ridge, located on the eastern shore of Lake Turkana in the territory of the nomadic Gabbra people. According to the National Museums of Kenya, the name comes from the Gabbra language ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

. It is known only from a single specimen, a left lower jaw with five preserved teeth. It probably dates to between 1.87 and 1.56 million years ago. The species was named in 2013 by paleontologists Lars Werdelin and Margaret E. Lewis. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''nyakitongwer'', is the word for "genet" in the local

Daasanach language Daasanach (also known as Dasenech, Daasanech, Dathanaik, Dathanaic, Dathanik, Dhaasanac, Gheleba, Geleba, Geleb, Gelebinya, Gallab, Galuba, Gelab, Gelubba, Dama, Marille, Merile, Merille, Morille, Reshiat, Russia) is a Cushitic language spoken b ...

. The only known specimen preserves the alveolus of the first lower

premolar The premolars, also called premolar Tooth (human), teeth, or bicuspids, are transitional teeth located between the Canine tooth, canine and Molar (tooth), molar teeth. In humans, there are two premolars per dental terminology#Quadrant, quadrant in ...

(p1), the broken second premolar (p2), the complete third premolar through first molar (p3, p4, and m1), and the broken second molar (m2). Its status as a separate species rests on its large size: it is far larger than any other genet except the giant forest genet (''Genetta victoriae''), the largest living genet, and it has more robust teeth than even the giant forest genet. In addition, the front part of the m1 (the

trigonid The molars or molar teeth are large, flat teeth at the back of the mouth. They are more developed in mammals. They are used primarily to grind food during chewing. The name ''molar'' derives from Latin, ''molaris dens'', meaning "millstone tooth ...

) is narrower than the back part (the

talonid The molars or molar teeth are large, flat teeth at the back of the mouth. They are more developed in mammals. They are used primarily to grind food during chewing. The name ''molar'' derives from Latin, ''molaris dens'', meaning "millstone tooth ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q118852976 Genets (animals) Pleistocene carnivorans Pleistocene mammals of Africa Fossils of Kenya Fossil taxa described in 2013 Species known from a single specimen