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17 summaries in Taxonomy & Systematics on lion
Evolutionary dynamics of the lion revealed by host and viral genomics
PaperThis study examined lion population history using both the lions' own genetic markers and the genetic signatures of their viruses, an innovative dual approach. By analyzing host DNA alongside feline i…
Antunes A, Troyer JL, Roelke ME, et al. · PLoS Genetics · 2008
Genetic diversity and evolutionary history of lions in West and Central Africa
PaperThis study focused on the poorly sampled lions of West and Central Africa and found them genetically distinct from East and Southern African lions, instead allied with the Asiatic lion. By analyzing m…
Bertola LD, van Hooft WF, Vrieling K, et al. · Journal of Biogeography · 2011
Genome-wide signatures of complex introgression and adaptive evolution in big cats
PaperThis genomic study sequenced multiple Panthera species and found pervasive evidence that gene flow between lineages, not just simple branching, shaped big cat evolution. The authors detected introgres…
Figueiro HV, Li G, Trindade FJ, et al. · Science Advances · 2017
Maternal demographic history of Panthera leo from ancient DNA
PaperThis study combined ancient and modern mitochondrial DNA to reconstruct the lion's maternal history, including extinct populations such as the Barbary and Cape lions. The authors used a spatially expl…
Barnett R, Yamaguchi N, Shapiro B, et al. · BMC Evolutionary Biology · 2014
Molecular evolution of mitochondrial sequences in the pantherine cats
PaperAn early molecular study of the big cats that used mitochondrial 12S rRNA and cytochrome b sequences to probe relationships within the Panthera group. This work was among the first to apply DNA sequen…
Janczewski DN, Modi WS, Stephens JC, O'Brien SJ · Molecular Biology and Evolution · 1995
Phylogeny of the great cats with fossil taxa and missing characters
PaperThis morphological study reconstructed relationships among the pantherine cats while explicitly incorporating fossil taxa and testing how missing data affect tree inference. Working from cranial and s…
Christiansen P · Cladistics · 2008
Phylogeographic patterns and genetic clades in the lion (Panthera leo)
PaperThis study used mitochondrial and nuclear markers across the lion's range to map genetic structure and found a deep division between northern lions (West and Central Africa plus Asia) and southern lio…
Bertola LD, Jongbloed H, van der Gaag KJ, et al. · Scientific Reports · 2016
Research overview: lion subspecies and CITES listing
OverviewThe redrawing of lion subspecies along a north-south axis has direct regulatory consequences under CITES and the Red List. This overview explains how the recognition of the northern subspecies Panther…
Research overview: mane variation and its limited taxonomic value in lions
OverviewLion manes vary enormously in size and color, from the dark, heavy manes once attributed to Barbary and Cape lions to the sparse manes of some East African and Asiatic lions. This overview examines wh…
Research overview: the ancestry of the extinct Barbary lion
OverviewThe Barbary lion of North Africa, famed for its dark, full mane, went extinct in the wild during the 20th century, and its status has fascinated taxonomists. This overview reviews ancient and historic…
Research overview: the cave lion and its relationship to modern lions
OverviewThe Pleistocene cave lion was a widespread Eurasian and Beringian predator, and ancient DNA has clarified how it relates to living lions. This overview summarizes genetic evidence that the cave lion,…
Research overview: the deep north-south split in lions
OverviewA consistent finding across lion genetics is a deep division between northern and southern populations that crosses the Sahara and reaches into Asia. This overview explains the evidence for this split…
Research overview: the genetic distinctiveness of the Asiatic lion
OverviewThe Asiatic lion of India's Gir Forest is the last surviving lion population in Asia and has long been treated as a distinct subspecies, Panthera leo persica. This overview examines its genetic status…
Research overview: the identity of the extinct Cape lion
OverviewThe Cape lion of southern Africa, extinct since the 19th century and noted for its dark mane, was once thought to be a distinct subspecies. This overview reviews genetic studies of museum specimens th…
Research overview: the two-subspecies lion classification, leo versus melanochaita
OverviewModern lion taxonomy recognizes two subspecies divided by a north-south axis rather than the old African-Asian split. This overview explains the arrangement: Panthera leo leo covers North, West, and C…
Supermatrix and species-tree methods resolve relationships within Panthera
PaperRelationships 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 supe…
Davis BW, Li G, Murphy WJ · Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution · 2010
The tiger genome and comparative analysis with lion and snow leopard genomes
PaperThis study produced the first reference genome for the tiger and compared it with newly sequenced lion and snow leopard genomes to investigate big cat evolution and adaptation. The authors identified…
Cho YS, Hu L, Hou H, et al. · Nature Communications · 2013