| Diegoaelurus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype ofDiegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae, (SDSNH 38343) | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | †Oxyaenodonta |
| Family: | †Oxyaenidae |
| Subfamily: | †Machaeroidinae |
| Genus: | †Diegoaelurus Zack, Poust, & Wagner, 2022 |
| Type species | |
| Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae Zack, Poust, & Wagner, 2022 | |
 | |
| A map showing the fossil finds of D. vanvalkenburghae as well as other machaeroidinid genera. | |
Diegoaelurus ("San Diego's cat") is anextinctgenus of placental mammals from the extinct subfamilyMachaeroidinae within extinct familyOxyaenidae. This genus contains only one speciesDiegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae, which was found in theSantiago Formation inCalifornia. This mammal lived during theUintan stage of theMiddle Eocene Epoch around 46.2 to 39.7 million years ago.[1][2]
The name of genusDiegoaelurus comes from citySan Diego and from Ancient Greek αἴλουρος (aílouros-) 'cat'.Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae was named after Dr.Blaire Van Valkenburgh in honor of her research on carnivorous mammals andsaber-toothed predatorpaleoecology.[1]
The holotype fossils were discovered inOceanside,San Diego county by paleontologist Brad Riney in 1988.[1] The fossils were housed for over threedecades in amuseum until 2022 when the fossils were described and recognised as a new genus and species.[1][3] This creature is so far the onlyNorth American species of Machaeroidinae known outside ofUtah andWyoming.[1] According to a paper on the creature, ''The present study highlights how poorly documented the machaeroidine fossil record remains''.[1]
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Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae was small in stature, with a size comparable to afossa.[3] Theholotype fossils (SDSNH 38343) consists of amandible and well preserveddentition.[1] Its discovery has made paleontologists question whether this group's extinction was caused due to thelarge faunal turnover at the end of the Eocene.[1] This creature as well as its subfamily were some of the first predatory saber toothed mammals to have evolved, 30 million years before theMachairodontinae (saber-toothed cats) evolved in theMiocene.[1][4] Due to the lack of remains, there is questioning to these animalsecological niches.[1] However, there are good remains fromMachaeroides eothen which support ahypercarnivorous lifestyle for the group.[1]D. vanvalkenburghae is actually the latest surviving member of its subfamily.[1]
The phylogenetic relationships of genusDiegoaelurus are shown in the following cladogram:[1]
| Machaeroidinae |
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Diegoaelurus along with all the members of itssubfamily went extinct at the end of the Eocene.[1] A supported theory is that these mammals went extinct during the Eocene-Oligocene extinction event;[1] A large faunal turnover at the end of theepoch[5] was probably caused by climate change, like the freezing of Antarctica disruptingocean currents and global temperature.[6][7] Many of the primitive mammals like thePalaeotheriidae,Xiphodontidae,Dichobunidae and theAdapidae were replaced by more advanced mammals like theRhinocerotidae(true rhinos),Castoridae (beavers)Oreodonts, and other more advancedArtiodacytyls as well as theErinaceids (hedgehogs).[8] It seems once the Oxyaenids went extinct their ecological nice was filled in by theNimravids, a family of saber-toothed mammals that belonged to the groupFeliformia.[1][9][10][11]