First sabre-toothed cat genome reveals a lethal long-distance hunter
Mo Farah’s got nothing on this long
distance runner. The first sabre-toothed
cat genome has revealed that the animal was a specialist at hunting prey over long
distances. The cat's DNA was extracted
from the fossil of a particular species of sabre-toothed cat known as the scimitar-toothed cat (Homotherium latidens). Like other sabre-toothed cats, it went extinct towards the end of the Pleistocene, around 10,000 to 30,000 years ago. This particular specimen, found in permafrost
sediments near Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada, was at least 47,000
years old.
A team at the University of
Copenhagen used genome-sequencing
techniques to read the entire genetic code that would’ve been packed into each of the animal’s cell nuclei (its ‘nuclear genome’). The cat’s genetic makeup hints that it was a highly skilled longdistance hunter.
“They likely had very good daytime vision and displayed complex social behaviours," said co-first author &r Michael Westbury. “They had genetic adaptations for strong bones and cardiovascular and respiratory systems, meaning they were well suited for endurance running. Based on this, we think they hunted in a pack until their prey reached exhaustion.”
Animals are known to use this hunting technique, called endurance hunting, when they’re slower than their prey over short distances, but have the stamina to win out over the longer chases.
The genetic analysis also showed that all modern cats are very distantly related to sabre-toothed cats, branching off from them on the evolutionary tree at least 22.5 million years ago. By comparison, humans and gibbons split between 15 and 20 million years ago.
Sabre-toothed cats were more genetically diverse than modern cats, which means that there were likely a lot of them around – indeed, their fossils have been found worldwide.
“This was an extremely successful family of cats," said co-first author Dr Ross Barnett.
“They were present on five continents and roamed the Earth for millions of years before going extinct.
The current geological period is the first time in 40 million years that Earth has lacked sabre-tooth predators. We just missed them.”