''Panthera onca augusta'', commonly known as the Pleistocene jaguar or simply the giant jaguar, is an extinct

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of the

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...

that was endemic to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

during the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

epoch (1.8 mya–11,000 years ago).

History and distribution

Although '' P. onca'' still resides in the southern United States and several Native American tales possibly about ''P. onca augusta'' exist, the first published remains were described in 1872. The fossils were found by

Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden (September 7, 1829 – December 22, 1887) was an American geologist noted for his pioneering surveying expeditions of the Rocky Mountains in the late 19th century. He was also a physician who served with the Union Ar ...

on the

Platte River The Platte River () is a major river in the State of Nebraska. It is about long; measured to its farthest source via its tributary, the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which itself ...

of Nebraska and sent to

Joseph Leidy Joseph Mellick Leidy (September 9, 1823 – April 30, 1891) was an American paleontologist, parasitologist and anatomist. Leidy was professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania, later was a professor of natural history at Swarthmore ...

at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, who named them ''Felis augustus'' in 1872. The fossils consisted of a

premolar The premolars, also called premolar teeth, or bicuspids, are transitional teeth located between the canine and molar teeth. In humans, there are two premolars per quadrant in the permanent set of teeth, making eight premolars total in the mouth ...

IV and

maxilla The maxilla (plural: ''maxillae'' ) in vertebrates is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The t ...

fragment, the type (

USNM The National Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. In 2021, with 7. ...

1004), as well as another tooth and a distal humerus, though the humerus is likely that of ''

Panthera atrox ''Panthera atrox'', better known as the American lion, also called the North American lion, or American cave lion, is an extinct Pantherinae, pantherine cat that lived in North America during the Pleistocene Epoch (geology), epoch and the earl ...

'' or ''

Smilodon fatalis ''Smilodon'' is a genus of the extinct machairodont subfamily of the felids. It is one of the most famous prehistoric mammals and the best known saber-toothed cat. Although commonly known as the saber-toothed tiger, it was not closely related ...

''. Leidy also mistakenly believed the fossils were from the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

. Later in 1919,

Oliver Perry Hay Oliver Perry Hay (May 22, 1846 – November 2, 1930) was an American herpetologist, ichthyologist, and paleontologist. Hay was born in Jefferson County, Indiana, to Robert and Margaret Hay. In 1870, Hay graduated with a bachelor of arts from Eu ...

described a left canine from Vero, Florida that he named ''Felis veronis'', though it is now seen as a synonym of ''P. onca augusta.'' In 1929, George Simpson referred several teeth from Seminole Field, Florida to ''F. veronis'' and the same year a right mandible and several teeth from

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...

were collected by Dr. J. W. Gidley. All material found has been referred to ''P. onca augusta'', the mandible notably was the first complete one found of the taxon. Yet another discovery came in 1938, with the discovery of 2 fragmentary postcranial skeletons of ''P. onca augusta'' in Cumberland Cave, Maryland intermingled with that of a puma. The most productive discoveries outside of California came in 1939 and 1944, with the discoveries of footprints and several fossils in Craighead Caverns, Tennessee during the former year. 1944 saw the collection of 2, well preserved skeletons in Salt River Cave, also in Tennessee, that included 2 partial skulls and many axial elements that clearly demonstrated the subspecies’ clear differences with other taxa. Many more fossils were later collected by the

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...

at Craighead Caverns, including several mandibles and partial craniums. Additional ''P. onca augusta'' fossils have been found in Oregon Richard L. Hill, 2006, Ice-age jaguar among fossil finds,

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 185 ...

and most notably, the

La Brea Tar Pits La Brea Tar Pits is an active paleontological research site in urban Los Angeles. Hancock Park was formed around a group of tar pits where natural asphalt (also called asphaltum, bitumen, or pitch; ''brea'' in Spanish) has seeped up from the gro ...

of California. ''P. onca augusta'' is most frequently found in Florida’s localities, as there are many fossil-bearing sites from the Pleistocene throughout Florida. In 2021, a partial mandible was referred to ''P. onca augusta'' from Chapala, Mexico, extending the range south to southwestern Mexico.

References

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2710152 Jaguars onca augusta Pleistocene carnivorans Pleistocene mammals of North America Pleistocene mammals of South America Prehistoric mammals of North America Pleistocene first appearances Pleistocene extinctions

History and distribution

See also

References

External links