''Oligobunis'' 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 ...
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 ...
s, which existed during the
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), 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 mea ...
epoch.
The genus was first described by
E. D. Cope in 1881. Cope assigned the genus to the family
Mustelidae
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 ...
, and J. A. Baskin assigned it to the subfamily
Oligobuninae
''Oligobuninae'' is an extinct subfamily of the family Mustelidae
The Mustelidae (; from Latin ''mustela'', weasel) are a family of carnivorous mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, ferrets, martens, minks and wolverines, among othe ...
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''.
[Riggs (1942)] ''O. 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.
Notes
References
* After The Dinosaurs.(2006) Donald R. Prothero. Indiana University Press.
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q7086806
Prehistoric mustelids
Miocene mammals of North America
Miocene mustelids
White River Fauna
Prehistoric carnivoran genera