Panthera principialis

Panthera principialis is an extinct species in big cat genus Panthera described in 2023 based on fragmentary Pliocene-aged fossils from Laetoli, Tanzania. As the species was the oldest known Panthera species at the time, it was given the specific epithet "principialis", from the Latin word meaning "initial, original, in the beginning".^[1]

Panthera principialis Temporal range: Pliocene ~3.7 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Suborder:	Feliformia
Family:	Felidae
Subfamily:	Pantherinae
Genus:	Panthera
Species:	†P. principialis
Binomial name
†Panthera principialis Hemmer, 2023

Taxonomy & evolution

The fossils on which P. principialis was based had previously been assigned to the species Panthera leo, Panthera gombaszogensis, and Panthera palaeosinensis.^[1]

Description

Panthera principialis was a lion-sized cat.^[1]