Africanictis
Encyclopedia
Africantis is an extinct species of carnivorous cat
-like mammal
s belonging to the superfamily
Aeluroidea
, endemic to Africa
from the Miocene
23.03—11.610 Ma, existing for approximately .
Africantis is shown to have an omnivorous diet or more precisely, hypercarnivorous
to hypercarnivorous
.
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
-like mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s belonging to the superfamily
Taxonomic rank
In biological classification, rank is the level in a taxonomic hierarchy. Examples of taxonomic ranks are species, genus, family, and class. Each rank subsumes under it a number of less general categories...
Aeluroidea
Aeluroidea
Aeluroidea is an extant and extinct superfamily of feline-like carnivores which are or were endemic to North America, South America, Africa, and Asia...
, endemic to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
from 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...
23.03—11.610 Ma, existing for approximately .
Africantis is shown to have an omnivorous diet or more precisely, hypercarnivorous
Hypercarnivore
A hypercarnivore is an animal which has a diet that is more than 70% meat, with the balance consisting of non-animal foods such as fungi, fruits or other plant material. Some examples include the big cats, dolphins, eagles, snakes, marlin, most sharks, and such invertebrates as octopuses and sea...
to hypercarnivorous
Mesocarnivore
A mesocarnivore is an animal whose diet consists of 50–70% meat with the balance consisting of nonvertebrate foods which may include fungi, fruits, and other plant material...
.