''Parailurus'' is a genus of extinct

carnivora Carnivora is a Clade, monophyletic order of Placentalia, placental mammals consisting of the most recent common ancestor of all felidae, cat-like and canidae, dog-like animals, and all descendants of that ancestor. Members of this group are f ...

n mammal in the family

Ailuridae Ailuridae is a family in the mammal order Carnivora. The family consists of the red panda (the sole living representative) and its extinct relatives. Georges Cuvier first described ''Ailurus'' as belonging to the raccoon family in 1825; this cl ...

. It was about 50% larger than ''

Ailurus The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzzl ...

'' (red panda) and lived in the early to late

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Epoch In chronology and periodization, an epoch or reference epoch is an instant in time chosen as the origin of a particular calendar era. The "epoch" serves as a reference point from which time is measured. The moment of epoch is usually decided by ...

, and its fossils have been found in Europe, North America, and Japan. The fossils of ''P. baikalicus'' carry low-crowned lower molars, along with the main cuspids of the cheek teeth being worn horizontally. This suggests ''P. baikalicus'' commonly ate leaves.

References

Pliocene carnivorans Prehistoric carnivoran genera Ailuridae Taxa named by Max Schlosser Fossil taxa described in 1899 {{paleo-carnivora-stub