Name: Dinofelis
(Terrible cat).
Phonetic: Die-no-fel-is.
Named By: Otto Zdansky - 1924.
Synonyms: Therailurus.
Classification: Chordata, Mammalia, Carnivora,
Felidae, Metailurini.
Species: D. cristata (type), D.
aronoki, D.
barlowi, D. darti, D. diastemata, D. paleoonca, D. petteri, D.
piveteaui.
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: Roughly around 70 centimetres high at the
shoulder.
Known locations: Depending upon species, Africa,
Eurasia, North America.
Time period: Early Pliocene through to early
Pleistocene. Further fossil discoveries point to a potential origin
within the Miocene period.
Fossil representation: Many known specimens.
Whereas
Smilodon
is without doubt the most famous prehistoric big cat,
Dinofelis is the most notorious. This notoriety
comes from the long
association of Dinofelis hunting and eating early
hominids like Homo
habilis, Paranthropus and Australopithecus
afarensis, thought by
some to be an ancestor to modern humans. This predation reveals that
Dinofelis was active in Africa, but the various
species attributed
to the genus are wide ranging with remains being found across Eurasia
and as far as North America.
Dinofelis
is often called a ‘false sabre-toothed cat’ because while its front
canines are enlarged beyond a point normally seen in today’s big
cats, they were not as large as the ‘true sabre-toothed cats’
like Smilodon that belong to the Machairodontidae.
It must be remembered though that
‘false sabre-toothed cat’ is a name that is more commonly applied to
the nimravids,
a group of cat-like mammals that appeared long before
the cats. The rear teeth however are not
very strong at all,
something that suggests that Dinofelis was more
restricted to eating
softer flesh rather than crunching bones.
Aside
from possibly killing
and eating early hominids, Dinofelis is thought
to have hunted
baboons as well. Other prey items would depend upon the availability
of different prey animals in different locations, but Dinofelis
also
thought to include other mammals, particularly juveniles of those
creatures. Larger species of Dinofelis probably
focused more upon
hunting the larger animals in their habitats.
Study of the Dinofelis skeleton has revealed that it was not a runner but an ambush hunter. This means that Dinofelis would have been more comfortable lurking in the undergrowth or pouncing from a tree to take its prey by surprise. The robust build of the skeleton, with special reference to the forelimbs, also indicates that Dinofelis had the muscle to wrestle prey to the ground so that it could use its enlarged canine teeth to inflict a mortal wound without risking dental injuries.
Further reading
- The Blanco Fauna. - University of Texas Publication 4401:509-556. -
G. E. Meade - 1945.
- A revision of the genus Dinofelis (Mammalia,
Felidae) - Zoological
Journal of the Linnean Society 132 (2): 147–258 - Lars Werdelin
& Margaret E. Lewis - 2001.