The evolutionary history of extinct and living lions

This study generated genome-scale data from ancient and modern lions, including the extinct cave lion, to reconstruct the deep evolutionary history of the lion lineage. The analyses confirmed that the cave lion, Panthera spelaea, formed a distinct lineage that diverged from the ancestors of modern lions hundreds of thousands of years ago and showed no evidence of subsequent interbreeding, despite overlapping ranges. The work also clarified relationships and population structure among living lions and refined estimates of divergence times across the group. By combining palaeogenomic data from Pleistocene specimens with modern samples, the study delivered one of the most comprehensive pictures of lion evolution to date, situating the great extinct cave lions firmly within the broader history of Panthera leo and its relatives.