Barbourofelis is an extinct genus of large, mostly carnivorous mammal

Mammal

Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...

s of the family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 Barbourofelidae

Barbourofelidae

Barbourofelidae is an extinct family of mammalian carnivores of the suborder Feliformia, which lived in North America, Eurasia and Africa during the Miocene epoch , existing for approximately .- Taxonomy :...

 (false saber-tooth cats) endemic to North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, during the Miocene

Miocene

The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...

 living from 13.6—5.3 Ma and existed for approximately .

Taxonomy

Barbourofelis was named by Schultz and et al. (1970). Its type is Barbourofelis fricki. It is the type genus of Barbourofelinae. It was assigned to Hoplophoneinae by Flynn and Galiano (1982); to Barbourofelinae by Bryant (1991); and to Nimravidae

Nimravidae

The Nimravidae, sometimes known as false saber-toothed cats, are an extinct family of mammalian carnivores belonging to the suborder Feliformia and endemic to North America, Europe, and Asia living from the Eocene through the Miocene epochs , existing for approximately .-Morphology:Although some...

 by Schultz and et al. (1970) and Martin (1998).

Morphology

A single specimen was examined by Legendre and Roth for body mass. The first specimen was estimated to weigh 66.4 kg (146.4 lb).

Thought to possibly be lion

Lion

The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...

-sized and had the longest canines

Canine tooth

In mammalian oral anatomy, the canine teeth, also called cuspids, dogteeth, fangs, or eye teeth, are relatively long, pointed teeth...

 of all barbourofelids. They had very prominent flange

Flange

A flange is an external or internal ridge, or rim , for strength, as the flange of an iron beam such as an I-beam or a T-beam; or for attachment to another object, as the flange on the end of a pipe, steam cylinder, etc., or on the lens mount of a camera; or for a flange of a rail car or tram wheel...

s on the lower jaws and an unusually shaped skull. The barbourofelids were probably very muscular, resembling a bear-like lion or lion-like bear. Although the nimravid family did evolve into cat-like forms, they left no descendents among modern cats.