American Lion
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| American Lion Fossil range: Pleistocene |
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| Panthera atrox skull | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Felidae |
| Genus: | Panthera |
| Species: | P. leo |
| Subspecies: | †P. l. atrox |
| Trinomial name | |
| Panthera leo atrox (Leidy, 1853) |
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The American lion (Panthera leo atrox) also known as the North American lion or American cave lion, is an extinct feline of the family Felidae, endemic to North America during the Pleistocene epoch (1.8 mya to 11,000 years ago), existing for approximately .[1]
It was one of the largest subspecies of cat ever to have existed, and the largest lion in history, slightly larger than the Late Beginning Pleistocene primitive cave lion, Panthera leo fossilis, and about twenty-five percent larger than the modern African lion.[2][3] Some estimates of the mass of this animal are as high as 380 kg (840 pounds).
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[edit] Description
The American lion is an extinct animal which originated in North America and went on to colonize part of South America as part of the Great American Interchange. The body length of the American lion is estimated to have been 3 - 3.7m (10 - 12ft).[4] Thus it was larger than its close relative, the extinct lion, Panthera leo fossilis, and the modern species of Siberian tiger, but still smaller than their contemporary competitor for prey, the Giant short-faced bear, which was the largest carnivoran of their era. The American lion was longer than any other felid overall, but it was not as heavily built as the saber-toothed cat Smilodon populator, which could weigh up to 370 kg. This would make the American lion the longest of all known felids, and Smilodon populator the heaviest.
Approximately one hundred specimens of American lions have been recovered from the La Brea Tar Pits, in Los Angeles, so their body structure is well known. The features and teeth of the extinct American lion strongly resemble modern lions, but they were considerably larger. The American lion was the largest subspecies of lion.
[edit] Range
South of Alaska, the American lion first appeared during the Sangamonian Stage (the last interglacial). After that it was widespread in the Americas from Alaska to Peru, although it was absent from eastern North America and peninsular Florida,[4] although they possibly lived in the Lake Michigan area. As did many other large mammals, it went extinct at the end of the Pleistocene, about 10,000 years ago. By then the American lion was one of the abundant Pleistocene megafauna, a wide variety of very large mammals who lived during the Pleistocene. Remains are most common in the Yukon and from the La Brea Tar Pits.
[edit] Environment
In some areas of its range, the American lion lived under cold climatic conditions. They probably used caves or fissures for shelter from the cold weather.[citation needed] They may have lined their dens with grass or leaves, as the Siberian tiger does, another great cat that currently lives in the north.[citation needed]
There are fewer American lions in the La Brea tar pits than other predators such as saber-toothed cats (Smilodon fatalis) or dire wolves (Canis dirus), which suggests they may have been smart enough to avoid the hazard[5], or their hunting methods and strategies simply did not include preying upon entrapped animals to the same degree.[original research?] American lions likely preyed on deer, North American horses[6] (now extinct), American bison, mammoths, and other large, herbivorous animals.
Their extinction may have been related to the Holocene extinction event, which wiped out most of the prey of megafauna. Their bones have been found among the refuse of Paleolithic American Indians , so hunting by humans may have contributed to their demise as well.[citation needed]
A replica of the jaw of the first specimen of American lion discovered can be seen in the hand of a statue of paleontologist Joseph Leidy, which is currently standing outside the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.
[edit] Classification
The American lion is considered a species of pantherinae, with the scientific name, Panthera atrox (pronounced /ˈpænθərə ˈliːoʊ ˈætrɒks/), which means cruel or fearsome lion in Latin). At least one authority considers the cave lion to be more closely related to the tiger, citing a comparison of skull shapes;[7] recent genetic research demonstrates the American lion as an intermediate between the jaguar and the lion/leopard lineage.[8][9]
A recent study that compared the skull, jaw, and teeth of P. atrox with other pantherines concluded that "Panthera atrox was no lion" and was distinct from all extant species. They authors suggested that P. atrox may have arisen from pantherines that migrated into North America in the mid-Pleistocene Epoch and also gave rise to jaguars.[10]
[edit] See also
- Panthera leo vereshchagini, the East Siberian or Beringian cave lion.
[edit] References
- ^ PaleoBiology Database: Panthera leo, basic info
- ^ SDNHM Fossil Mysteries Field Guide: American lion. Accessed 7/31/07. http://www.sdnhm.org/exhibits/mystery/fg_lion.html
- ^ Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre - American Lion. Accessed 2008-08-13. http://www.beringia.com/02/02maina5.html
- ^ a b Paul S. Martin: Quaternary Extinctions. The University of Arizona Press, 1984. ISBN 0-8165-1100-4
- ^ SDNHM Fossil Mysteries Field Guide: American lion
- ^ http://www.discoverseaz.com/History/Horse.html
- ^ Groiss, 1996.
- ^ Burger, Joachim et al. (2004): Molecular phylogeny of the extinct cave lion Panthera leo spelaea. (PDF) Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. Vol.30, p.841-849.
- ^ Christiansen, Per (December 2008): "Phylogeny of the great cats (Felidae: Pantherinae), and the influence of fossil taxa and missing characters" Cladistics Vol.24, Nu.6,pp. 977-992(16)
- ^ Christiansen, Per, & Harris, John M. (2009). "Craniomandibular Morphology and Phylogenetic Affinities of Panthera atrox: Implications for the Evolution and Paleobiology of the Lion Lineage". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 29 (3): 934-945. doi:.
[edit] External links
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Wikispecies has information related to: Panthera leo atrox |
- Prehistoric cats and prehistoric cat-like creatures, from the Messybeast Cat Resource Archive.
- American lion, by C. R. Harrington, from Yukon Beringia Interpretative Center.
- Panthera atrox 1853, from the Academy of Natural Sciences. (the original specimen)
- Panthera Atrox in Cryptozoology
- Artistic Reconstruction, portrait of the american cave lion.
