The Late Miocene Radiation of Modern Felidae: A Genetic Assessment

This landmark study reconstructed the evolutionary tree of all 37 living cat species using mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences combined with molecular dating calibrated by the fossil record. The authors resolved the modern cats into eight major lineages that diverged from a common Asian ancestor roughly 11 million years ago, and they reconstructed at least ten intercontinental migrations across Beringia and the Panamanian land bridge that drove felid diversification. The Panthera lineage was found to be the oldest branch. The work provided the backbone phylogeny that nearly all subsequent felid genetics relies upon, framing how repeated sea-level changes and dispersal shaped the rapid, recent success of cats worldwide.