Comparing big cats - differences/changes with time

[BlakeW39]

(02-16-2020, 09:14 AM)Rishi Wrote:

(02-16-2020, 06:03 AM)BlakeW39 Wrote: I wanted your imput on certain evolutionarily morphological ideas, i.e. why tigers and lions convergently evolved and how/why they differ physically from an adaptive POV & how jaguars diverged from other cats in their physicality and why.

The usual "originating on separate far-off corners of the world" central America, sub-saharan Africa & fareast Asia seem very reasonable explanation. Ancestors of jaguars were split much earlier & stranded away on a whole new continent when Bering Land Bridge  got submerged.

Their similarities of physique with tigers are likely result of convergent evolution under comparable niche & habitat.

Thanks for your response! I don't want to mess up anyone's thread, so if I shouldn't speak on this here just let me know.

I actually wasn't so much curious as to how they evolved from a genetic POV (i.e. lion/jaguar lineage splits from tigers, then lions and jaguars split and go opposite directions); moreso in why they evolved adaptively for their physical structure.

So like why tigers and lions got to be the same size, and moreover what differences are between them (build? muscularity? etc) and what pressures drove the similarities and differences or how/why jaguars evolved their abnormally large skulls, short limbs, and squat frames, and why the needlessly strong jaws.

Sorry if I'm inconvenient: I just thought this was a really interesting topic but didn't know where to get you guys' take. Thanks :) Reply