Quercylurus

Quercylurus major is an extinct nimravid carnivoran, or "false sabre-tooth," from the early Oligocene of France. Its fossils are found from Early Oligocene strata in Quercy. Q. major was possibly the largest nimravid ever known, as its fossils suggest it was similar in size to the modern-day brown bear and was scansorial.[1] It was very muscular, walked on plantigrade (flat-footed). So far, there is only one described species within this genus - Q. major. The species lived in the moist and humid forests of Oligocene Europe alongside fellow nimravid Eofelis. It was an apex predator in its environment, and it is likely that it hunted large ungulates by ambush.

Quercylurus
Temporal range: Early Oligocene
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: †Nimravidae
Subfamily: †Nimravinae
Genus: †Quercylurus
Species:
†Q. major
Binomial name
†Quercylurus major
Ginsburg 1979

Taxonomy

Quercylurus was named by Ginsburg (1979). It was assigned to Felidae by Carroll (1988),[2] but later, it was then later placed within Nimravidae.

References
  1. Jordi Agusti and Mauricio Anton: Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids 65 million years of Mammalian Evolution in Europe , Columbia University Press, 2002, pp.81-83
  2. R. L. Carroll. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution. W. H. Freeman and Company, New York 1-698.


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