A number of recent genetic and systematic reviews have changed our knowledge of the taxonomy of Mustelidae. In particular, the subfamily Galictinae Reig, 1956 has been recently grouped in the subfamily Ictonychinae Pocock, 1921. Among the Eurasian fossil taxa of this subfamily, the first to be described were Enhydrictis Major, 1901 and Pannonictis Kormos,1931. The latter genus is well characterised from the Plio-Pleistocene deposits of central and southern Europe, whereas Enhydrictis is an

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... ic and enigmatic form, recovered fromlate Pleistocene localities of Sardinia. Other recent studies have revealed a more palaeo-diverse and complex taxonomic scenario than was previously thought. Based on variousevidence, this review proposes a reinterpretation of the material of the galictini from earlyPleistocene sites such as St. Vallier and Olivola, historically named "Mustela" ardea Gervais,1848–1852, and its attribution to Martellictis gen. nov. The definition of Martellictis ardeareveals a more complex systematic panorama of western Eurasian Ictonychinae, and at thesame time, this re-ascription stresses the importance of understanding the possible originof the different morphological adaptations (such as those of Enhydrictis) and clarifying thephylogenetic relationships among these taxa.