Supermatrix and species-tree methods resolve relationships within Panthera

Relationships among the big cats long resisted resolution because of short internal branches and conflicting markers. This study assembled a large multi-gene dataset and applied both concatenated supermatrix and coalescent species-tree analyses to clarify the branching order within Panthera, including the positions of the lion, leopard, jaguar, tiger, snow leopard, and clouded leopards. The authors recovered a better-supported topology and discussed how conflict among gene trees, likely from rapid speciation and introgression, had obscured earlier results. The work helped stabilize the genus-level framework that the 2017 taxonomy adopted, confirming clouded leopards as the sister group to other Panthera and refining the placement of the snow leopard. It exemplifies how methodological advances, not just more data, improve felid phylogenetics.