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Panthera is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of the family
Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is a taxonomic rank. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Codes which applies....
 Felidae
Felidae

Felidae is the family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the most strictly Carnivore of the sixteen mammal families in the order Carnivora....
 (the cats), which contains four well-known living species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
: the Tiger
Tiger

The tiger is a member of the Felidae family; the largest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera. Native to much of eastern and southern Asia, the tiger is an apex predator and an Carnivore#Obligate carnivores....
, the Lion
Lion

The lion is a member of the family Felidae and one of four big cats in the genus Panthera. With exceptionally large males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger....
, the Jaguar
Jaguar

The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a New World Felidae and one of four "big cats" in the Panthera genus, along with the tiger, lion, and leopard of the Old World....
, and the Leopard
Leopard

The leopard is a member of the Felidae biological family and the smallest of the four "Panthera" in the genus Panthera; the other three are the tiger, lion and jaguar....
. The genus comprises about half of the Pantherinae
Pantherinae

Pantherinae is the subfamily of the family Felidae which includes the genera Panthera, Uncia and Neofelis. The divergence of Pantherinae from Felinae has been ranked between six and ten Mega-annum....
 subfamily, the big cat
Big cat

The term big cat is used to distinguish the larger Felidae species from smaller ones. One definition of big cat includes only the four species of cat in the genus Panthera: the tiger, lion, leopard, and jaguar....
s. One meaning of the word panther is to designate cats of this subfamily. The word is often presumed to derive from Greek pan- ("all") and ther ("beast") or "theras" that means ("hunter") because they can hunt and kill allmost everything, but this may be a folk etymology.






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Encyclopedia


Panthera is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of the family
Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is a taxonomic rank. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Codes which applies....
 Felidae
Felidae

Felidae is the family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the most strictly Carnivore of the sixteen mammal families in the order Carnivora....
 (the cats), which contains four well-known living species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
: the Tiger
Tiger

The tiger is a member of the Felidae family; the largest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera. Native to much of eastern and southern Asia, the tiger is an apex predator and an Carnivore#Obligate carnivores....
, the Lion
Lion

The lion is a member of the family Felidae and one of four big cats in the genus Panthera. With exceptionally large males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger....
, the Jaguar
Jaguar

The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a New World Felidae and one of four "big cats" in the Panthera genus, along with the tiger, lion, and leopard of the Old World....
, and the Leopard
Leopard

The leopard is a member of the Felidae biological family and the smallest of the four "Panthera" in the genus Panthera; the other three are the tiger, lion and jaguar....
. The genus comprises about half of the Pantherinae
Pantherinae

Pantherinae is the subfamily of the family Felidae which includes the genera Panthera, Uncia and Neofelis. The divergence of Pantherinae from Felinae has been ranked between six and ten Mega-annum....
 subfamily, the big cat
Big cat

The term big cat is used to distinguish the larger Felidae species from smaller ones. One definition of big cat includes only the four species of cat in the genus Panthera: the tiger, lion, leopard, and jaguar....
s. One meaning of the word panther is to designate cats of this subfamily. The word is often presumed to derive from Greek pan- ("all") and ther ("beast") or "theras" that means ("hunter") because they can hunt and kill allmost everything, but this may be a folk etymology. Although it came into English through the classical languages, panthera is probably of East Asia
East Asia

East Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either Geography or cultural terms. Geography and geopolitically, it covers about 12,000,000 km?, or about 28 percent of the Asian continent, about 15 percent bigger than the area of Europe, though some categorize Tibet, Xinjiang, and Mongolia as Central Asia....
n origin, meaning "the yellowish animal," or "whitish-yellow".

Only these four cat species have the anatomical changes enabling them to roar
Roar (animal)

A roar is a deep bellowing outburst of sound produced by animals of certain species. A powerful, intimidating sound, it is made by use of a small bone, the hyoid, which is not completely rigid in adults....
. The primary reason for this was assumed to be the incomplete ossification
Ossification

Ossification is the process of bone formation, in which connective tissues, such as cartilage are turned to bone or bone-like tissue. The ossified tissue is invaginated with blood vessels....
 of the hyoid bone
Hyoid bone

The hyoid bone is a horseshoe shaped bone situated in the anterior midline of the neck between the chin and the thyroid cartilage. At rest, it lies at the level of the base of the mandible in the front and the third cervical vertebra behind....
. However, new studies show that the ability to roar is due to other morphological
Morphology (biology)

The term morphology in biology refers to form, structure and configuration of an organism. This includes aspects of the outward appearance as well as the form and structure of the internal parts like bones and organs....
 features, especially of the larynx
Larynx

The larynx , colloquially known as the voicebox, is an organ in the neck of mammals involved in protection of the vertebrate trachea and sound production....
. The Snow Leopard
Snow Leopard

The snow leopard , sometimes known as "ounce," is a moderately large Felidae native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia. The classification of this species has been subject to change and its exact taxonomy position is still unclear....
, Uncia uncia, which is sometimes included within Panthera, does not roar. Although it has an incomplete ossification of the hyoid bone, it lacks the special morphology of the larynx.

Evolution


Like much of the Felidae
Felidae

Felidae is the family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the most strictly Carnivore of the sixteen mammal families in the order Carnivora....
 family, Panthera has been subject to much debate and many taxonomic revision. At the base of the genus is probably the extinct felid Viretailurus schaubi, which is sometimes also regarded as an early member of the Puma group
Puma (genus)

Puma is a Felidae genus that contains the Cougar and the Jaguarundi.References...
. Panthera has likely derived in Asia, but the definite roots of the genus remain unclear. The divergence of the Pantherine cats
Pantherinae

Pantherinae is the subfamily of the family Felidae which includes the genera Panthera, Uncia and Neofelis. The divergence of Pantherinae from Felinae has been ranked between six and ten Mega-annum....
 (including the living genera Panthera, Uncia
Snow Leopard

The snow leopard , sometimes known as "ounce," is a moderately large Felidae native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia. The classification of this species has been subject to change and its exact taxonomy position is still unclear....
 and Neofelis
Neofelis

The genus Neofelis contains two species, the Clouded Leopard and the Bornean Clouded Leopard . The latter was only elevated by biologists to the rank of species in 2006; it was formerly regarded as a subspecies of the Clouded Leopard....
) from the Felinae
Felinae

Felinae is a subfamily of the Family Felidae which includes the genera and species listed below. Most are small to medium-sized cats, although the group does include some larger animals, such as the Cougar and Cheetah....
 (including all other living cat species) has been ranked between six and ten Ma. The fossil record points to the emergence of Panthera just 2 to 3.8 million years ago.

Morphological and genetic studies have suggested that the tiger was the first of the recent Panthera species to emerge from the lineage, but this remains unresolved. The Snow Leopard was seen originally at the base of the Panthera, but newer molecular studies suggest, that it is nestled within Panthera, and may be even a sister species of the Leopard. Many thus place the Snow Leopard within the genus Panthera but there is currently no consensus whether Snow Leopard should retain its own genus, Uncia or be moved to Panthera uncia. A prehistoric feline, probably closely related to the modern Jaguar, is Panthera gombaszogensis, often called European Jaguar
European jaguar

The European jaguar lived about 1.5 million years ago, and is the earliest known Panthera-species from Europe. Fossil remains were first known from the Olivola site in Italy and under the synonym Tuscany lion from other Italian localities....
. This species appeared first around 1.6 million years ago in what is now Olivola
Olivola

Olivola is a comune in the Province of Alessandria in the Italy region Piedmont, located about 50 km east of Turin and about 25 km northwest of Alessandria....
 in Italy.

The Clouded Leopard
Clouded Leopard

The Clouded Leopard is a medium-sized felidae, 55 to 110 cm long and weighing between 15 and 23 kilograms . It has a tan or tawny coat, and is distinctively marked with large, irregularly-shaped, dark-edged ellipses which are said to be shaped like clouds, hence both its common and original scientific name....
 (Neofelis nebulosa), which was divided in 2007 to distinguish the Bornean Clouded Leopard
Bornean Clouded Leopard

The Bornean Clouded Leopard is a medium-sized wild felidae found on Borneo, Sumatra and the Batu Islands in the Malay Archipelago and publicised under that name by the World Wide Fund for Nature on March 14, 2007....
 (Neofelis diardi), is generally placed at the basis of the Panthera group, but is not included in the genus Panthera itself.

Species, subspecies, and populations

There have been many subspecies of all four Panthera species suggested; however, many of the Leopard and Lion subspecies are questionable. Recently it has been proposed that all sub-saharan populations of Leopards are all the same Leopard subspecies, and all sub-saharan populations of Lions likewise belong to the same Lion subspecies, as they do not have sufficient genetic distinction between them. Some prehistoric Lion subspecies have been described from historical evidence and fossils. They may have been separate species.

The 'Black panther
Black panther

A black panther is a black color variant of one of several species of larger Felidae which are known by the term panther in various parts of the world, and belong to the feline genus panthera which contains lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars....
' is not a distinct species but is just the common name for black (melanistic) specimens of the genus, most often encountered in Jaguar and Leopard species.

Taxa

(Extinct species and subspecies are indicated with the symbol †)

  • Genus Panthera
    • Panthera crassidens
      Panthera crassidens

      Panthera crassidens is a possible species of leopard, that is now extinct. It lived during the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene in Africa. It has been argued that the few fossil remains do not represent a genuine species, and instead belong to some other form of Panthera ....
       (probably identical with another felid taxon) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera gombaszoegensis (European jaguar
      European jaguar

      The European jaguar lived about 1.5 million years ago, and is the earliest known Panthera-species from Europe. Fossil remains were first known from the Olivola site in Italy and under the synonym Tuscany lion from other Italian localities....
      ) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera leo (Lion
      Lion

      The lion is a member of the family Felidae and one of four big cats in the genus Panthera. With exceptionally large males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger....
      )
      • Panthera leo atrox - American Lion
        American lion

        The American lion also known as the North American lion, American cave lion, is an extinct Felidae known from fossils. It was one of the largest subspecies of lion ever to have existed, comparable in size to the Early Middle Pleistocene primitive cave lion, Panthera leo fossilis, and about twenty-five percent larger than...
         or North American cave lion †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo azandica - North East Congo lion
      • Panthera leo bleyenberghi - Katanga lion or Southwest African lion
      • Panthera leo europaea - European lion
        European lion

        The European lion could be an extinct subspecies of lion that inhabited southern Europe until historic times. This population is generally considered part of the Asiatic lion , but others consider it a separate subspecies, the European lion ....
         †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo fossilis - Early Middle Pleistocene European cave lion †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo hollisteri - Congo lion
      • Panthera leo kamptzi
      • Panthera leo krugeri - South African lion or Southeast African lion
      • Panthera leo leo - Barbary lion
        Barbary Lion

        The Barbary Lion, Atlas lion or Nubian lion is a subspecies of lion that has become Extinction in the wild. There are around 40 in captivity in Europe, with fewer than a hundred in zoos around the world....
         †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo melanochaita - Cape lion
        Cape Lion

        The Cape Lion, Panthera leo melanochaitus, a subspecies of lion and is now extinct in the wild.Cape "black-maned" Lions ranged along the Cape of Good Hope of Africa on the southern tip of the continent....
         †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo massaica - Masai lion
      • Panthera leo nubica - East African lion
      • Panthera leo melanochaita
      • Panthera leo nyanzae
      • Panthera leo persica - Asiatic lion
        Asiatic Lion

        The Asiatic Lion is a subspecies of the lion which survives today only in India where it is also known as the Indian lion. They once ranged from the Mediterranean to India, covering most of Southwest Asia, and hence it is also known as the Persian lion....
      • Panthera leo sinhaleyus - Sri Lanka lion
        Sri Lanka lion

        The Sri Lanka Lion , also known as the Ceylon Lion, was a prehistoric subspecies of lion, endemic to Sri Lanka. It appears to have become extinct prior to the arrival of culturally modern humans, circa 37,000 years Before Christ....
         or Ceylon lion. †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo spelaea - Eurasian cave lion
        Cave lion

        The cave lion also known as the European or Eurasian cave lion, is an extinct subspecies of lion known from fossils and multiple examples of prehistoric art....
         †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera leo senegalensis - West African lion, or Senegal lion
      • Panthera leo vereshchagini - East Siberian and Beringian cave lion
        Panthera leo vereshchagini

        Panthera leo vereshchagini, also known as the East Siberian or Beringian cave lion, is an extinct prehistoric lion that inhabited Yakutia , Alaska , and the Yukon Territory ....
         †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera onca (Jaguar
      Jaguar

      The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a New World Felidae and one of four "big cats" in the Panthera genus, along with the tiger, lion, and leopard of the Old World....
      )
      • Panthera onca arizonensis
      • Panthera onca centralis
      • Panthera onca goldmani
      • Panthera onca hernandesii
      • Panthera onca onca
      • Panthera onca palustris
      • Panthera onca paraguensis
      • Panthera onca peruviana
      • Panthera onca veracrucis
      • Panthera onca mesembrina - Pleistocene South American Jaguar †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera onca augusta - Pleistocene North American Jaguar†
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera palaeosinensis
      Panthera palaeosinensis

      Panthera palaeosinensis was an early Pleistocene species from northern China. It appears to represent an early tiger or a form ancestral to the tiger....
       (Pleistocene
      Pleistocene

      The Pleistocene is the epoch from 1.8 million to 10,000 years Before Present covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
       pantherine; Probably ancestral to the tiger) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera pardoides
      Panthera pardoides

      Panthera pardoides is a primitive species of leopard , that is now extinct....
       (a primitive pantherine) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera pardus (Leopard
      Leopard

      The leopard is a member of the Felidae biological family and the smallest of the four "Panthera" in the genus Panthera; the other three are the tiger, lion and jaguar....
      )
      • Panthera pardus delacouri (Indo-Chinese Leopard
        Indo-Chinese leopard

        The Indo-Chinese leopard is a subspecies of leopard native toMainland Southeast Asia. Not much is known about this subspecies except that it is listed...
        )
      • Panthera pardus fusca (Indian Leopard
        Indian Leopard

        The Indian leopard is a leopard subspecies native to the Indian subcontinent....
        )
      • Panthera pardus japonensis (North China Leopard
        North China leopard

        The North Chinese leopard is a subspecies of leopards native to northern China. This leopard is so rare that it is almost never seen in the wild....
        )
      • Panthera pardus kotiya (Sri Lanka Leopard
        Sri Lanka Leopard

        The Sri Lanka leopard , colloquially known as Kotiya, is a subspecies of leopard native to Sri Lanka. However, "kotiya" is now the colloquial Sinhala language name for the tiger and "diviya" is used for the leopard....
        )
      • Panthera pardus melas (Java Leopard)
      • Panthera pardus nimr (Arabian Leopard
        Arabian leopard

        The Arabian leopard is a smaller subspecies of leopard than that of its cousins in Asia and Africa. This subspecies is critically endangered and their populations are still declining....
        )
      • Panthera pardus orientalis (Amur Leopard
        Amur Leopard

        The Amur Leopard is a wild feline predator native to the Russian Far East. It is one of the rarest felines in the world with an estimated 30 to 35 individuals remaining in the wild....
        )
      • Panthera pardus pardus (African Leopard
        African Leopard

        The African Leopard is the most common leopard subspecies with the least conservation concern....
        )
      • Panthera pardus saxicolor (Persian Leopard
        Persian Leopard

        The Persian leopard , or Iranian leopard, is one of the leopard subspecies native to western Asia. It is endangered species throughout its range in the Middle East....
        )
      • Panthera pardus sickenbergi (European leopard} †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera pardus tulliana (Anatolian Leopard
        Anatolian leopard

        The Anatolian leopard was once described as a distinct subspecies of leopard native to Anatolia , Turkey. However, modern taxonomic analyses have demonstrated that the leopards of Asia Minor genetically differ little from other west- and central Asian leopards and should therefore be included into the Persian leopard subspecies....
        )
    • Panthera (Viretailurus) schaubi
      Panthera schaubi

      Panthera schaubi or Viretailurus schaubi is a prehistoric feline species, which is probably at the base of the genus Panthera....
       (prehistoric felid) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera schreuderi
      Panthera schreuderi

      Panthera schreuderi is a possible pre-historic species of large cat, that is now extinct. It lived in Europe during the late Pliocene and early Pleistocene....
       (prehistoric felid) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
       - probably junior synonym of European Jaguar
    • Panthera tigris (Tiger
      Tiger

      The tiger is a member of the Felidae family; the largest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera. Native to much of eastern and southern Asia, the tiger is an apex predator and an Carnivore#Obligate carnivores....
      )
      • Panthera tigris altaica (Siberian Tiger)
      • Panthera tigris amoyensis (South China Tiger
        South China Tiger

        The South China tiger or South Chinese tiger , also known as the Chinese, Amoy, or Xiamen tiger, is a subspecies of tiger native to the forests of Northern and southern China....
        )
      • Panthera tigris balica (Balinese Tiger) †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera tigris corbetti (Indochinese Tiger
        Indochinese Tiger

        The Indochinese tiger or Corbett's tiger is a subspecies of tiger found in Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam. The "Corbett's" name stems from the scientific name of the subspecies, Panthera tigris corbetti, which in turn is named in honor of Jim Corbett ....
        )
      • Panthera tigris jacksoni (Malayan Tiger
        Malayan Tiger

        The Malayan tiger , found in the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula, until 2004 was not considered a subspecies in its own right....
        )
      • Panthera tigris sondaica (Javan Tiger
        Javan Tiger

        The Javan tiger was a tiger limited to the Indonesian island of Java . It now seems likely that this subspecies was made extinct in the 1980s, as a result of hunting and habitat destruction, but the extinction of this subspecies became increasingly probable from the 1950s onwards, when it is thought that fewer than 25 tigers remained in the...
        ) †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
      • Panthera tigris sumatrae (Sumatran Tiger
        Sumatran Tiger

        The Sumatran Tiger is a subspecies of tiger found on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The wild population is estimated at approximately 250 animals, occurring predominantly in the island's List of national parks of Indonesia#Sumatra....
        )
      • Panthera tigris tigris (Bengal Tiger
        Bengal Tiger

        The Bengal tiger, or Royal bengal tiger , is a subspecies of tiger primarily found in India and Bangladesh. They are also found in Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, Myanmar and southern Tibet....
        )
      • Panthera tigris virgata (Caspian Tiger
        Caspian Tiger

        The Caspian tiger or Persian tiger was the westernmost subspecies of tiger, found in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Caucasus, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan until it apparently became extinction in the late 1950s, though there have been several alleged sightings of the tiger....
        ) †
        Extinction

        In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
    • Panthera toscana (Tuscany lion
      Tuscany lion

      The Tuscany lion or Tuscany jaguar was a prehistoric large feline of the Villafranchian of Italy. Although originally named as a separate species, Panthera toscana is now often recognized as an early form of Panthera gombaszoegensis, the European Jaguar....
       or Tuscany jaguar) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
       - probably junior synonym of European Jaguar
    • Panthera youngi
      Panthera youngi

      Panthera youngi is known from Choukoutien, northeastern China and lived about 350,000 years ago. Data reviewed in 1969 suggested that the American lion, the Cave lion and the large Chinese Panthera youngi are conspecific....
       (a prehistoric Chinese lion-like felid) †
      Extinction

      In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....