''Neogale'' is a genus of

mustelid The Mustelidae (; from Latin ''mustela'', weasel) are a family of carnivorous mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, ferrets, martens, minks and wolverines, among others. Mustelids () are a diverse group and form the largest family in th ...

native to the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with t ...

, ranging from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

south to

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

. Members of this genus are known as New World weasels.

Taxonomy

Members in this genus were formerly classified into the genera '' Mustela'' and '' Neovison'', but many studies had previously recovered several American species of ''Mustela'', as well as both species within ''Neovison'', to comprise a monophyletic clade distinct from all other members of Mustelinae. A 2021 study found this clade to have diverged from ''Mustela'' during the Late

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" ...

, between 11.8 - 13.4 million years ago, with all members within the clade being more closely related to one another than to any of the other species in ''Mustela'', and gave it the name ''Neogale'', originally coined by

John Edward Gray John Edward Gray, FRS (12 February 1800 – 7 March 1875) was a British zoologist. He was the elder brother of zoologist George Robert Gray and son of the pharmacologist and botanist Samuel Frederick Gray (1766–1828). The same is used for ...

. The American Society of Mammalogists later accepted this change.

Species

There are 5 recent species in the genus, 4 extant and 1 extinct:

Extant species

Extinct species

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q107548263 Mustelinae Taxa named by John Edward Gray Extant Miocene first appearances