Adelphailurus

Name: Adelphailurus.
Phonetic: A-del-fay-el-ur-us.
Named By: C.‭ ‬W.‭ ‬Hibbard‭ ‬-‭ ‬1934.‭
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Carnivora,‭ ‬Felidae,‭ ‬Machairodontinae,‭ ‬Metailurini.
Species: A.‭ ‬kansensis‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: About‭ ‬60-90‭ ‬high at the shoulder,‭ ‬and around‭ ‬2-2.4‭ ‬meters long.
Known locations: USA,‭ ‬Arizona‭ ‬-‭ ‬Big Sandy Formation,‭ ‬Quiburis Formation,‭ ‬Kansas‭ ‬-‭ ‬Edson‭ & ‬Oklahoma‭ ‬-‭ ‬Ogallala Formation.
Time period: Mid Tortonina to the Messinian of the Miocene.
Fossil representation: Partial remains of several individuals.

       One of the lesser known machairodonts,‭ ‬the placement of Adelphailurus within the machairodontinae has been questioned with speculation that it may be a false sabre-tooth.‭ ‬Adelphailurus also had a pair of second premolar teeth,‭ ‬a primitive feature that harks back to the early days of felid evolution.‭ ‬Although fossil remains of Adelphailurus are usually very incomplete,‭ ‬they have been noted as being very similar to the modern Puma concolor‭ (‬a.k.a.‭ ‬cougar/mountain lion‭) ‬in both physical proportion and size.‭ ‬This in turn has led to speculation that back in the late Miocene,‭ ‬Adelphailurus may have had a similar ecological niche as today’s Puma concolor.

Further reading
-‭ ‬Two new genera of Felidae from the middle Pliocene of Kansas.‭ ‬Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Sciences‭ ‬37:239-255.‭ ‬-‭ ‬C.‭ ‬W.‭ ‬Hibbard‭ ‬-‭ ‬1934.‭
-‭ ‬Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution.‭ ‬-‭ ‬W.‭ ‬H.‭ ‬Freeman and Company,‭ ‬New York‭ ‬1-698.‭ ‬-‭ ‬R.‭ ‬L.‭ ‬Carroll‭ ‬-‭ ‬1988.
-‭ ‬Evolution of Tertiary Mammals of North America‭ ‬1:236-242‭ ‬-‭ ‬L.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Martin‭ ( ‬C.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Janis,‭ ‬K.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Scott,‭ ‬and L.‭ ‬L.‭ ‬Jacobs‭ (‬eds.‭)) ‬-‭ ‬1998.

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