Proailurus is an extinct felid genus that lived in Europe and Asia approximately 25–30.8 million years ago in the Late Oligocene and Miocene. Fossils have been found in Mongolia, Germany, and Spain.
Etymology
The generic name Proailurus comes from the Greek , meaning 'before', and , meaning 'cat'. The specific name of P. bourbonnensis simply means "from the Bourbonnais".
Proailurus major is estimated to have been significantly larger, about 23 kg. The p4 tooth is stronger and the m1 is less elongated than in P. lemanensis. However, P. julieni was later placed in the genus Stenogale.
In 1882, Filhol described a third species, Proailurus medius. In 1888, Schlosser made "P." medius the type species of the genus Haplogale. Haplogale medias placement was later confirmed by Robert Hunt's 1998 studies of aeluroid skulls.
In 1999, Peigné carried out a systematic review of the genus, naming another two species, P. bourbonnensis and P. major, in the process. P. major was based on a single specimen, a left mandible from Quercy and Mainz, while P. bourbonnensis was based on a number of lower mandibles and teeth, as well as a left maxilla.
Distribution and species
Fossils of Proailurus lemanensis were first found in Saint-Gerand and later in Quercy.
P. major and P. bourbonnensis are both known from a single locality each: P. major from Saint-Gérand-le-Puy and P. bourbonnensis from Saint-Gérand-le-Puy, Weisbaden-Amoneburg, and Budenheim (where it is the only Proailurus species known from the Mainz Basin). and the smaller Sheep Creek material to Pseudaelurus skinneri in 2003. The Ginn Quarry cat was described, but not assigned to any taxa, in 2019; though the authors did state that "it should not be dismissed as a 'proailurine-grade' felid" and suggested placing it in Hyperailurictis (despite being considerably older than any known Hyperailurictis) or a new genus.
Evolution
Proailurus is believed to have evolved from earlier ailuroid carnivorans such as Stenogale and Haplogale.
Proailurus is largely considered to be the first "true" cat and the ancestor of the entire cat family. Most studies support this, placing Proailurus as the basal member of the Felidae. One 2005 phylogeny placed it as a basal member of the Feliformia, but later studies do not support this.