The Cave Lion (Panthera spelaea and Panthera fossilis)

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(11-16-2017, 09:44 AM)Wolverine Wrote:

(11-15-2017, 09:33 PM)tigerluver Wrote: largest skulls of P. atrox most are aware of (458 mm) and a bit smaller than the giant Mokhnevskaya P. fossilis skull (475 mm) and University of California giant P. atrox skull (467.5 mm).

Is this skull of P.fossilis from Mokhnevskaya the largest ever discovered skull of cat from genus Panthera? Could be assumed that this specimen from Mokhnevskaya is the largest Pantherinae known to the science till this moment?

According to Bergmann's rule within a broadly distributed taxonomic clade, populations and species of larger size are found in colder and northern environments, and species of smaller size are found in warmer and southern regions. From all ancient representatives of genus Panthera representatives of P.fossilis inhabited most northern latitudes of the Earth - Siberia and Alaska, hence P. fossilis logically should be larger than P.atrox, P.tigris soloensis and P. tigris acutidiens.

That would only be true if the genetic size difference between lions and tigers were similar; not saying it is completely false though. The American Lion grew up to be 650-pounds on average, the Ngandong Tiger 650 to 700-pounds on average, and Panthera Fossilis maybe in between, on average. There is a lot more that goes on than simply the difference of climates.

Hereditary genes also make a big difference. Humans, coming from the same Pleistocene lineage, grew similarly thicker when they went up north and skinnier when migrating south; however, tigers and lions grew from two completely different lineages in the same genus under different conditions. I think tigers (and I am saying this with no absolute proof) have the potential to be a much larger size than lions on both average and maximum due to their in-built genetics. Throughout their lineage, most tiger species seemed to be consistently smaller than the lions on average, but the exceptional tiger species were much larger than the exceptional lion ones. So if @GrizzlyClaws or @tigerluver can back me up or prove me otherwise, then the statement can be true. Reply