Enhydra
Genus of mammals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Enhydra is a genus of mustelid that contains the sea otter and two extinct relatives. It is the only extant genus of the bunodont otters group, referring to otters with non-blade carnassials with rounded cusps.[1]
| Enhydra | |
|---|---|
| |
| Sea otter (Enhydra lutris) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Mustelidae |
| Subfamily: | Lutrinae |
| Genus: | Enhydra Fleming, 1828 |
| Species | |
|
Enhydra lutris - Sea otter | |
Sea otters probably diverged from other otters during the Pliocene, approximately 5 mya.[2] They probably arose from the closely related Enhydritherium, a bunodont otter endemic to North America during the late Miocene and early Pliocene epochs.[1]
Enhydra reevei, the oldest known species, has its origins in the Atlantic, suggesting this may have been where sea otters originated.[2] Fossil evidence indicates the Enhydra lineage became isolated in the North Pacific approximately 2 million years ago, giving rise to the now-extinct Enhydra macrodonta and the modern sea otter.
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