''Panthera leo sinhaleyus'' is an extinct prehistoric
subspecies
In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
of
lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...
, excavated in
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
. It is believed to have become extinct prior to the arrival of humans .
History and taxonomy
In 1938, the paleontologist
Paulus Deraniyagala named a new prehistoric subspecies of lion, ''Panthera leo sinhaleyus'', based on a single left lower carnassial (M1) tooth excavated from deposits in
Kuruwita as the
holotype
A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
and a damaged right lower canine tooth from the same location as a "metatype".
It was further described, but named only as ''Panthera leo'', in a 2005 study of felid fossils from the Kuruwita site.
Description
Deraniyagala called the holotype "narrower and more elongate" but otherwise provided little information on what distinguished ''P. l. sinhaleyus'' from other lion subspecies, and distinguished it only from the teeth of tigers by its larger size. The 2005 study also described it in more detail.
See also
*
Asiatic lion
The Asiatic lion is a lion population of the subspecies ''Panthera leo leo''. Until the 19th century, it occurred in Saudi Arabia, eastern Turkey, Iran, Mesopotamia, and from east of the Indus River in Pakistan to the Bengal region and the Narm ...
*''
Panthera fossilis
''Panthera fossilis'' (also known as ''Panthera leo fossilis'' or ''Panthera spelaea fossilis'') is an extinct species of Felidae, cat belonging to the genus ''Panthera,'' known from remains found in Eurasia spanning the Middle Pleistocene and po ...
''
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q221268
leo sinhaleyus
leo sinhaleyus
Pleistocene carnivorans
Pleistocene extinctions
Pleistocene mammals of Asia
Fossil taxa described in 1938
Taxa named by Paulus Edward Pieris Deraniyagala