Vrana P B, Milinkovitch M C, Powell J R, Wheeler W C
Department of Invertebrates, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York 10024-5192.
Mol Phylogenet Evol. 1994 Mar;3(1):47-58. doi: 10.1006/mpev.1994.1006.
The relationships of the lesser or red panda, Ailurus, have remained elusive even as any doubts about the identity of the giant panda as a bear have been erased. While usually classified as a member of the Procyonidae (raccoons), recent anatomical studies have suggested that the red panda may not fall in any of the arctoid carnivore families but instead may reflect an early offshoot of the lineage leading to ursids (bears) and pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, and walruses). Sequence data from the cytochrome b and 12S genes for multiple representatives of all relevant families support this hypothesis. Such a systematic position makes this threatened species particularly worthy of conservation. Sequence data alone, as well as a combined analysis of the sequence and anatomical data, strongly support a single origin of pinnipeds and their aquatic adaptations, lending some resolution to the general disagreement about familial relationships in this group. These molecular data also support canids as the basal members of this caniform clade, but are unresolved with respect to whether mustelids or procyonids constitute the sister group to the (ursid, pinniped, Ailurus) clade. There is support for the notion that skunks are a genetically divergent and possibly nonmustelid lineage.
即便大熊猫作为熊类的身份已不存在任何疑问，但小熊猫（即红熊猫）的分类关系却一直扑朔迷离。虽然红熊猫通常被归类为浣熊科的一员，但最近的解剖学研究表明，红熊猫可能不属于任何熊型食肉目科，反而可能反映出通往熊科动物（熊）和鳍足类动物（海豹、海狮和海象）的谱系的早期分支。来自所有相关科多个代表的细胞色素b和12S基因的序列数据支持这一假说。这样的系统发育位置使得这个濒危物种特别值得保护。仅序列数据以及序列和解剖数据的综合分析，都有力地支持了鳍足类动物及其水生适应性的单一起源，为该类群中关于科间关系的普遍分歧提供了一些解决方案。这些分子数据也支持犬科动物作为这个犬型类分支的基部成员，但关于鼬科动物或浣熊科动物是否构成（熊科、鳍足类、小熊猫）分支的姐妹群仍未确定。有证据支持臭鼬是一个基因分化且可能非鼬科的谱系这一观点。
