Nimravus is an extinct genus of "false" saber-toothed cat that lived in North America, Asia and Europe during the late Eocene and Oligocene epochs 35.3—26.3 mya,[1] existing for approximately 9 million years. Not closely related to true saber-toothed cats, they evolved a similar form through parallel evolution. Fossils have been uncovered in the western U.S. from Oregon to southern California and Nebraska.
| Nimravus Temporal range: Priabonian to Oligocene,
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|---|---|
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| N. brachyops skull | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Suborder: | Feliformia |
| Family: | †Nimravidae |
| Subfamily: | †Nimravinae |
| Genus: | †Nimravus Cope, 1879 |
| Type species | |
| †Nimravus brachyops Cope, 1879
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| Species | |
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Description
editNimravus was around 1.2 metres (4 ft) in body length. With its sleek body, it may have resembled the modern caracal, although it had a longer back and more dog-like feet with partially retractile claws. It probably hunted birds and small mammals, ambushing them like modern cats, rather than chasing them down. Nimravus competed with other false sabre-tooths such as Hoplophoneus.[2]
Pathology
editA Nimravus skull, found in North America, had been pierced in the forehead region, the hole exactly matching the dimensions of the sabre-like canine of Eusmilus. This particular individual of Nimravus apparently survived this encounter, as the wound showed signs of healing. Another Nimravus fossil from Nebraska was described in 1959 by paleontologist Loren Toohey, and comprises a Nimravus skull with saber-teeth embedded into the humerus of another Nimravus, indicating a fatal incidence of intra-specific combat.[3]
References
edit- ^ "PBDB Taxon". paleobiodb.org. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 222. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- ^ The Dakota Badlands Used to Host Sabertoothed Pseudo-Cat Battles
External links
edit
Media related to Nimravus at Wikimedia Commons