Felis lunensis, or the Martelli's cat is an extinction Felidae of the subfamily Felinae.
Evolution and taxonomy
Around 12 million years ago, the genus
Felis appeared and eventually gave rise to many of the modern small cats.
Felis lunensis was one of the first modern
Felis species, appearing around 2.5 million years ago in the
Pliocene. Fossil specimens of
F. lunensis have been recovered in
Italy and
Hungary.
Fossil evidence suggests the modern European wildcat
Felis silvestris may have evolved from
F. lunensis during the Middle Pleistocene.
This has resulted in
F. lunensis occasionally being considered a subspecies of
Felis silvestris.
Felis lunensis first described by Alessandro Martelli in 1906 was a mandible excavated in Pliocene deposits near Olivola in Tuscany.
Further reading
