Mellivora is a genus of mustelids that contains the honey badger or ratel (Mellivora capensis). It is also the sole living representative of the subfamily Mellivorinae. Additionally, two extinct species are known. The honey badger is native to much of Africa and South Asia, while fossil relatives occurred in those areas and Southern Europe.
The genus Mellivora probably evolved from the more primitive †Promellivora punjabiensisofIndia (which itself was formerly classified as M. punjabiensis). The two genera are grouped together in the tribe Eomellivorini together with the extinct giant mustelids †Eomellivora and †Ekorus.[3]
^Valenciano, A.; Govender, R. (July 2020). "New fossils of Mellivora benfieldi (Mammalia, Carnivora, Mustelidae) from Langebaanweg, 'E' Quarry (South Africa, Early Pliocene) : re-evaluation of the African Neogene Mellivorines". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 40 (4): e1817754. doi:10.1080/02724634.2020.1817754. S2CID227249176.
^Haile-Selassie, Yohannes (2009). Ardipithecus Kadabba: Late Miocene Evidence from the Middle Awash, Ethiopia. University of California Press. pp. 243–244. ISBN9780520254404.
