Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota. The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: Manis, Phataginus, and Smutsia. Manis comprises four species found in Asia, while Phataginus and Smutsia include two species each, all found in sub-Saharan Africa. These species range in size from 30 to 100 cm. A number of extinct pangolin species are also known. In September 2023, nine species were reported.
Viverridae is a 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, southern Europe, and South and Southeast Asia, across the Wallace Line.
The ground pangolin, also known as Temminck's pangolin, Cape pangolin or steppe pangolin is a species of pangolin from genus Smutsia of subfamily Smutsiinae the within family Manidae. It is one of four species of pangolins which can be found in Africa, and the only one in southern and eastern Africa. The animal was named for the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck.
Manidae ("spirits") is the only extant family of pangolins from superfamily Manoidea. This family comprises three genera, as well as extinct Fayum pangolin.
The giant pangolin is a species of pangolin from genus Smutsia of subfamily Smutsiinae within the family Manidae. It is the largest living species of pangolins. Members of the species inhabit Africa with a range stretching along the equator from West Africa to Uganda. It subsists almost entirely on ants and termites.
Necromanis is an extinct genus of pangolin from superfamily Manoidea. It lived from the middle Oligocene to middle Miocene in Europe. It was originally placed within family Manidae, but was eventually removed from it as more fossil pholidotids from outside that family were found and studied more extensively. Currently, Necromanis is placed as incertae sedis within the pholidotid superfamily Manoidea, together with the families Manidae and Patriomanidae.
The long-tailed pangolin, also called the African black-bellied pangolin or ipi, is a diurnal, arboreal pangolin species belonging to the family Manidae, in the order Pholidota. They feed on ants rather than termites. The common names for this species stem from physical characteristics, such as the extremely long tail or the dark hairs that cover the underside of their bodies and limbs. Pangolin comes from the Malay word pengguling, meaning “something that rolls up”.
The Viverrinae represent the largest subfamily of the Viverridae comprising three genera, which are subdivided into six species native to Africa and Southeast Asia. This subfamily was denominated and first described by John Edward Gray in 1864.
African tree pangolin (Phataginus) is a genus of African pangolins from subfamily small African pangolins (Phatagininae), within family Manidae. Its members are the more arboreal of the African pangolins.
African ground pangolin is a genus of pangolins from subfamily Smutsiinae within family Manidae. It was formerly considered a subgenus of genus Manis. Its members are the more terrestrial of the African pangolins. In past, this genus was also present in Europe.
Bovina is a subtribe of the Bovini tribe that generally includes the two living genera, Bison and Bos. However, this dichotomy has been challenged recently by molecular work that suggests that Bison should be regarded as a subgenus of Bos. Wild bovinans can be found naturally in North America and Eurasia.
Palaeanodonta is an extinct clade of stem-pangolins. They were insectivorous (myrmecophagous), possibly fossorial, and lived from the middle Paleocene to early Oligocene in North America, Europe and Asia. While the taxonomic grouping of Palaeanodonta has been debated, it is widely thought that they are a sister group to pangolins.
Eupholidota is a suborder of pangolins that includes two superfamilies: extant Manoidea and extinct Eomanoidea.
Manoidea ("spirits") is a superfamily of pangolins from suborder Eupholidota that includes extant family Manidae, extinct family Patriomanidae and extinct genus Necromanis.
Pangolin, sometimes known as a scaly anteater, is a mammal of the order Pholidota -one extant family, Manidae; more specifically:
Smutsia olteniensis is an extinct species of pangolins from genus Smutsia of subfamily Smutsiinae within family Manidae. Fossilized remains of the species were found in Romania, providing evidence regarding the existence of pangolins in Europe during the Plio-Pleistocene period.
Cryptomanis is an extinct genus of pangolin from extinct family Patriomanidae. The genus is only known from the holotype specimen from middle Eocene deposits from Inner Mongolia, China. The holotype, AMNH 26140, was for years labeled as an unnamed pangolin in the fossil collection for decades. The remains consist of an incomplete postcranial specimen, with nearly complete hind limbs, an incomplete pelvis, a complete lumbar series from an incomplete vertebral column, numerous fragmentary remains of rib and sternal bones, a fragmentary scapula, and partially preserved forelimbs. Based on the femural length Cryptomanis was comparable in size to the modern Sunda pangolin.
