Proailurus

Proailurus

__NOEDITSECTION__Taxobox
name = "Proailurus"
fossil_range = Late Oligocene to Early Miocene



image_width = 250px
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Mammalia
ordo = Carnivora
superfamilia = Feloidea
genus = †"Proailurus"
genus_authority = Filhol, 1879
species = †"P. lemanensis"
species_authority = Filhol, 1879

"Proailurus" was a prehistoric carnivore that lived in Europe and Asia approximately 25 million years ago in the Late Oligocene and Miocene. One recent phylogeny [cite journal | last = Wesley-Hunt | first = Gina D. | coauthors = Flynn, John J. | title = Phylogeny of the Carnivora: basal relationships among the Carnivoramorphans, and assessment of the position of ‘Miacoidea’ relative to Carnivora | journal = Journal of Systematic Palaeontology | volume = 3 | pages = 1–28 | date = 2005 | doi = 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2005.00194.x] places it as a basal member of the Feloidea, the superfamily that includes mongooses, civets, hyenas, and cats; but other studies suggest that it instead was a felid (a true cat). [cite journal | last = Rothwell | first = Tom | title = Phylogenetic Systematics of North American "Pseudaelurus" (Carnivora: Felidae) | journal = American Museum Novitates | volume = 2403 | pages = 1–64 | date = 2003 | doi = 10.1206/0003-0082(2003)403<0001:PSONAP>2.0.CO;2]

"Proailurus" was a compact and small animal, just a little larger than the domestic cat, weighing about 20 lb (9 kg). It had a long tail, large eyes and sharp claws and teeth, with similar proportions to the modern viverrids. Its claws would have been retractable to some extent. Like the viverrids, "Proailurus" was at least partially arboreal. [cite book |last=Turner |first=Alan |year=1997 |title= The Big Cats and their fossil relatives|publisher= Columbia University Press|location=New York|pages= 25|isbn= 0-231-10228-3]

"Proailurus", a likely ancestor of "Pseudaelurus" which lived 20-10 million years ago, probably gave rise to the major felid lines, including the extinct machairodontines and the extant felines and pantherines, although the phylogeny of the cats is still not precisely known. [cite journal | last = Christiansen | first = Per | title = Phylogeny of the great cats (Felidae: Pantherinae), and the influence of fossil taxa and missing characters | journal = Cladistics | date = 2008 | doi = 10.1111/j.1096-0031.2008.00226.x ]

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Proailurus — Zeitraum Oberes Oligozän bis unteres Miozän 30 bis ca. 20 Mio. Jahre Fundorte Europa Asien Systematik Klasse: Säugetier …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Proailurus — Proailurinae †Proailurus lemanensis …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Proailurus lemanensis — †Proailur …   Wikipédia en Français

  • προαίλουρος — (proailurus). Γένος σαρκοφάγων θηλαστικών της οικογένειας των ικτιδιδών, που έχει εκλείψει. Τα βασικά χαρακτηριστικά τους μοιάζουν με εκείνα των μοσχογαλών. Απολιθωμένα λείψανα π. βρέθηκαν μέσα σε ολιγοκαινικά στρώματα. Με τον π. συγγενεύει ο… …   Dictionary of Greek

  • Proailurinae — †Proailurus lemanensis …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Felidae — Pour les articles homonymes, voir félin (arme) et Les Félins m aiment bien. Félidés …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Feliden — Katzen Ozelot Systematik Klasse: Säugetiere (Mammalia) Unterklasse: Höhere S …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Katze (Biologie) — Katzen Ozelot Systematik Klasse: Säugetiere (Mammalia) Unterklasse: Höhere S …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Raubkatze — Katzen Ozelot Systematik Klasse: Säugetiere (Mammalia) Unterklasse: Höhere …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Raubkatzen — Katzen Ozelot Systematik Klasse: Säugetiere (Mammalia) Unterklasse: Höhere …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”