Panthera Fossilis

''Panthera fossilis'' (also known as ''Panthera leo fossilis'' or ''Panthera spelaea fossilis''), is an extinct species of cat belonging to the genus ''Panthera,'' known from remains found in Eurasia spanning the Middle Pleistocene and possibly into the Early Pleistocene. ''P. fossilis'' has sometimes been referred to by the common names steppe lion or cave lion, though these names are conventionally restricted to the later related species '' P. spelaea,'' to which ''P. fossilis'' is probably ancestral.

Discoveries

It was first described from remains excavated near Mauer in Germany. Bone fragments of ''P. fossilis'' were also excavated near Pakefield in the United Kingdom, which are estimated at 680,000 years old. Bone fragments excavated near Isernia in Italy are estimated at between 600,000 and 620,000 years old. The first Asian record of a ''fossilis'' lion was found in the Kuznetsk Basin in western Siberia and dates to the late Early Pleistocene.

Evolution

''P. fossilis'' is estimated to have evolved in Eurasia about 600,000 years ago from a large pantherine cat that originated in the Tanzanian Olduvai Gorge about 1.2–1.7 million years ago. This cat entered Eurasia about 780,000–700,000 years ago and gave rise to several lion-like forms. The first fossils that can be definitively classified as ''P. fossilis'' date to 610,000 years ago. Recent nuclear genomic evidence suggest that interbreeding between modern lions and all Eurasian fossil lions took place up until 500,000 years ago, but by 470,000 years ago, no subsequent interbreeding between the two lineages occurred.

Characteristics

Bone fragments of ''P. fossilis'' indicate that it was larger than the modern lion and was among the largest cats. Skeletal remains of ''P. fossilis'' populations in Siberia measure larger than those in Central Europe. Compared to a modern lion, ''P. fossilis'' had a slightly wider skull and nasal cavity, smaller orbits, less inflated bullae, less specialized lower teeth, reduced lower premolars and smaller incisors.

Taxonomic history

''P. fossilis'' was historically considered an early lion (''P. leo'') subspecies as ''Panthera leo fossilis''. Some authors considered it a subspecies of ''Panthera spelaea'' (''Panthera spelaea fossilis'') or treat it as a distinct species. Some employ a subgenus of ''Panthera'', "''Leo''", to contain several lion-like members of ''Panthera'', including ''P. leo'', ''P. spelaea'', '' P. atrox'' and ''P. fossilis''. A 2022 study concluded that ''P. fossilis'' and ''P. spelaea'' represented a chronospecies lineage, with most differences between the two species explainable by size differences.

Results of mitochondrial genome sequences derived from two Beringian specimens of ''Panthera spelaea'' indicate that it and ''Panthera fossilis'' were distinct enough from the modern lion to be considered separate species.

Palaeobiology

This lion coexisted with early humans and prehistoric fauna. A mandible from the early hominid ''Homo heidelbergensis'' was excavated in 1907 at Mauer, Germany.Schoetensack, O. (1908). Der Unterkiefer des ''Homo heidelbergensis'' aus den Sanden von Mauer bei Heidelberg. Ein Beitrag zur Paläontologie des Menschen. Leipzig: Engelmann.

Herbivores that coexisted with the lion included the hippopotamus, narrow-nosed rhinoceros, straight-tusked elephant, southern mammoth, moose, steppe bison and fallow deer. Sympatric predators included bears, wolves, hyenas and saber-toothed cats.

See also

* History of lions in Europe
* '' Panthera leo sinhaleyus''
* '' Panthera pardus spelaea''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q511072
fossilis
Leo
Pleistocene mammals of Europe
Pleistocene carnivorans
Pleistocene species extinctions
Fossil taxa described in 1906