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flesh. However some species are omnivorous, like raccoons and bears, and quite few species like pandas are specialized herbivores. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, whereas the word "carnivore" (often popularly applied to members of this group) can refer to any meat-eating organism. With at least 279 extant species found on every major landmass and in a variety of habitats, ranging the cold polar regions to the hyper-arid region of the Sahara Desert to the open seas even, Carnivora is the fifth largest order of mammals and one of the more successful members of the group. They come in a huge array of different body plans in contrasting shapes and sizes. The smallest carnivoran is the least weasel (Mustela nivalis), which can weigh as little as 25 g (0.88 oz) and 11 cm (4.3 in), as the largest is the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), whose adult males weigh up to 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) and measure up to 6.7 m (22 ft) in length. All species of carnivorans are descended from a group of mammals which were related to today’s pangolins, having appeared in North America 6 million years after the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event. These early ancestors of carnivorans would have resembled small weasel or genet-like mammals, occupying a nocturnal shift on the forest floor or in the trees, as other groups of mammals like the mesonychians and creodonts were occupying the top faunivorous niche. However by the time Miocene epoch appeared, most if not all of the major lineages and families of carnivorans had diversified and took over this niche." - (en.wikipedia.org 20.03.2020)