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van Valkenburgh, B.; Grady, F.; Kurt‚n, B.
The plio-pleistocene cheetah-like cat _Miracinonyx inexpectatus_ of North America
1990  Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (10): 434-454

The taxonomy of the North American cheetah-like cats is unresolved as they have been assigned at different times to _Felis, Puma_, or _Acinonyx_. A recently discovered, nearly complete skeleton of a large, slender-limbed cat of Irvingtonian age from West Virginia prompted this study of their relationships. We describe the new specimen and compare it with the living puma (_Puma concolor_) and cheetah (_Acinonyx jubatus_) as well as with the extinct Old World cheetah (_A. pardinensis_) and New World cheetah-like cats most recently assigned to _Acinonyx trumani_ and _A. studeri_. The new specimen appears to be a member of the earlier of the two North American species, previously known as _A. studeri_, here called _Miracinonyx inexpectatus_ based on the priority of Cope's (1895) name. A cladistic analysis suggests that the New and Old World forms are distinct at the generic level and we remove the North American taxa from _Acinonyx_ and place them in the genus _Miracinonyx_. The two genera are distinguished by a minimum of ten features of the skull and postcranial skeleton. _Miracinonyx_ differs from _Puma_ primarily in limb proportions, slenderness of the long bones, and aspects of the nasomaxillary region of the skull. A review of the fossil record suggests that the extinction of _M. inexpectatus_ preceded the appearance of both the cursorial _M. trumani_ and the shorter-limbed _Puma concolor_. Thus, _M. inexpectatus_ could have given rise to both of these taxa in the middle Pleistocene.

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