Suricata is a genus of mongoose that is endemic to Africa. The oldest species known is the extinct Suricata major that lived about 1.8 million years ago in South Africa.[1][2] The only species alive is the meerkat (Suricata suricatta).

Suricata
Temporal range: Early Pleistocene - Recent
Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Herpestidae
Subfamily: Mungotinae
Genus: Suricata
Desmarest, 1804
Type species
Mustela suricatta
Schreber, 1776
Species

References

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  1. ^ Werdelin, Lars; Sanders, William Joseph (2010). Cenozoic Mammals of Africa. University of California Press. p. 631. ISBN 9780520257214.
  2. ^ Avery, D. Margaret (2019). A Fossil History of Southern African Land Mammals. Cambridge University Press. p. 104. ISBN 9781108480888.