''Herpestides'' is an extinct

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other s ...

that was endemic to

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and

Southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alba ...

during the

Early Miocene The Early Miocene (also known as Lower Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages: the Aquitanian age, Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages. The sub-epoch lasted from 23.03 ± 0.05 annum, Ma to ...

subepoch (22.4—20 mya) and existed for approximately 2.4 million years.

Taxonomy

''Herpestides'' is considered to belong to the

Aeluroidea Aeluroidea is an extant clade of feline-like carnivores that are, or were, endemic to North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. They appeared during the Oligocene about . Taxonomy Aeluroidea was named by William Henry Flower Sir Willi ...

group of cat-like carnivores and, in particular, to the

Viverridae Viverridae is a family (biology), family of small to medium-sized, feliform mammals. The viverrids () comprise 33 species placed in 14 genera. This family was named and first described by John Edward Gray in 1821. Viverrids occur all over Africa, ...

. Four species are recognised: * ''H. aegypticus'' * ''H. aequatorialis'' * ''H. antiquus'' * ''H. compactus''

References

Prehistoric hyenas Miocene carnivorans Prehistoric mammals of Europe Miocene mammals of Africa Prehistoric carnivoran genera Fossil taxa described in 1967 {{paleo-carnivora-stub