The previous blog post traces the evolution of the domesticated house cat back to its most recent ancestor, F.S lybica, a wildcat species originating from the Middle East (Driscoll et. al, 2009). But what about the evolutionary history of F.S lybica and its relatives? The scientific article “The Evolution of Cats,” follows  the the ancestry of domesticated and big cats back to the earliest known feline roots (O’Brien and Johnson, 2007). 

Nimravidae Skeleton.
Image from: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hoplophoneus_skeleton.jpg

      The authors of this article chronologically map out the evolutionary ancestry of felines by comparing feline morphology, fossils, and the DNA of all the world’s current cat species. For many years, scientists believed the extinct species Nimravidae was the first form of cat, as it morphologically resembles the saber-toothed cat. In 2004, Nimravidae was removed from the Felidae (true cat) family due to the bone structure of its ears. Is is now referred to as a false cat. It’s morphological similarities to true cats is credited to parallel evolution. Now, Pseudaelurus is believed to be the first true cat species and is believed to be directly related to to all modern cat breeds (O’Brien and Johnson, 2007). 

        Pseudaelurus broke up into eight sub-groups. The first group, Panthera, formed 6.4 million years ago, and moved into Asia. Today, species of Panthera include tigers, jaguars, and leopards. The second sub-group, branching off 5.41 million years ago, is the bay cat lineage, a serious of small Asian cats. 5.6 million years ago, the caracal lineage formed in Africa. After the formation of the Barren Straight, cats began to move into the Americas. The first American cat species was the ocelot group, whose formation dates back to 2.9 million years ago. The members of the ocelot lineage evolved to create the lynx and and puma lineages 3.2 and 4.9 million years ago. When North America entered an ice age, many members of these lineages re-crossed the Barring Straight and returned to Asia and Africa. Amongst these species was the cheetah. Other species, like the jaguar, moved to South America. Some, like the cougar, remained in North America. The seventh group, forming 3.4 million years ago, is the Asian Leopard Cat lineage. The final and most recent lineage is the domesticated cat, developing only 3.4 million years ago from a single common ancestor, F.S lybica (O’Brien and Johnson, 2007).  

Drawing of Pseudaelurus. Image from:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pseudaelurus_1.jpg

        This article credits the vast movement of cats to their behavior and ability to adapt. Cats are are very territorial and, with the exception of lions who live in prides, claim large amounts of land for their individual hunting needs. Many cat species also follow herds of prey long distances. The fact that cats are found in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America in multiple environmental and climate conditions demonstrates their ability to adapt and thrive in new environments (O’Brien and Johnson, 2007) .  

The Eight Lineages of cats. Image from http://www.nature.com/scientificamerican/journal/v297/n1/box/scientificamerican0707-68_BX1.html

Citations:

O’Brien, S, and Johnson, W, 2007, “The Evolution of Cats,” Scientific American, Vol 297, pp 68-75

Driscoll, C, Clutton-Brock, J, Kitchener, A, & O’Brien, S, 2009, 'The Taming of the Cat,’ Scientific American, vol 300, pp. 68-75.