Lions and tigers and bears. Oh my! Frightening to some, these mammals, as well as their many relatives, are among nature’s most interesting creatures. The order Carnivora is divided into 16 families, 13 of which are terrestrial. These 13 families consist of 245 living species, all of which are thoroughly documented in this book. Part of the Princeton Field Guide series, Carnivores of the World, is a comprehensive and up-to-date source of information (one species was “first formally described in late 2010 as this book was going to press”) that would be useful for anyone, professional or amateur, with an interest in the world’s carnivores.

The carnivores descend from small, civet- like animals that lived more than 60 million years ago. The varieties that exist today, distributed on all the continents, range in size from the least weasel (Mustela nivalis), with a body mass of about 275 g, to the 450–650 kg polar bear (Ursus maritimus). As the name implies, most are meat eaters, at least to some extent, the herbivorous giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) being …