Page 12 - American Jaguar; Big Cats, Biogeography, and Human Borders

ancestors as elephants), the short-faced bear, and the giant ground
sloth. North America was also home to several species of big cats,
including the American lion (Panthera atrox), American leopard, and
the family of saber-toothed cats known as Smilodon. It was also home
to the ancestor of the modern jaguar.
While the jaguar was only one of several large cats wandering
North America, the competition was about to get very thin.
At the end of the Pleistocene epoch, Earth’s climate was going

Lion Panthera leo
Felidae Evolutionary Tree Leopard Panthera pardus
Panthera ancestor Jaguar Panthera onca
Tiger Panthera tigris
6.4 MYA Snow leopard Panthera uncia
Clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa
Bornean clouded leopard Neofelis diardi
Felid Bay cat ancestor
ancestor 5.41 MYA Asian golden cat Pardofelis temminckii
Bornean bay cat Pardofelis badia
Marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata
10.8
MYA Caracal Caracal caracal
Caracal ancestor
5.6 MYA African golden cat Caracal aurata
9.4 MYA Serval Leptailurus serval
Geoffroy’s cat Leopardus geoffroyi
Ocelot ancestor Kodkod Leopardus guigna
2.9 MYA Oncilla Leopardus tigrinus
8.5 MYA Andean mountain cat Leopardus jacobita
Pampas cat Leopardus colocolo
Margay Leopardus wiedii
Ocelot Leopardus pardalis
Lynx ancestor
8.0 MYA 3.2 MYA Iberian lynx Lynx pardinus
Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx
Canada lynx Lynx canadensis
Bobcat Lynx rufus
Puma ancestor Puma Puma concolor
7.2 MYA 4.9 MYA Jaguarundi Puma yagouaroundi
Cheetah Acinonyx jubatus
Asian leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis
6.7 MYA Fishing cat Prionailurus viverrinus
Flat-headed cat Prionailurus planiceps
Rusty-spotted cat Prionailurus rubiginosus
Leopard cat ancestor Pallas’s cat Otocolobus manul
5.9 MYA
6.2 MYA
Domestic cat Felis catus
Wildcat Felis silvestris
Domestic cat ancestor Sand cat Felis margarita
3.4 MYA Black-footed cat Felis nigripes
Jungle cat Felis chaus
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Today
Millions of years ago (MYA)