Felidae in Mammal Species of the World (3rd edition) carnivore checklist

Before the 2017 task force, the most widely cited global checklist of mammal taxonomy was Mammal Species of the World, whose carnivore section codified the accepted list of cat species and subspecies. This entry describes how that checklist treated the Felidae, including its handling of contested taxa and the many trinomial subspecies it carried forward. It explains the checklist's role as a nomenclatural backbone for databases, museums, and legislation, and why its felid arrangement was later revised when molecular evidence and the task force pruned subspecies and adjusted genera. The piece notes that comparing this older checklist with the 2017 report is a useful exercise for understanding exactly which names changed and why.