| Name | Panthera spelaea | Diet | Carnivorous |
| Name Meaning | “Cave Lion” | Height | 1.2 meters (3.9 feet) |
| Pronunciation | Pan-the-rah spee-lee-ah | Length | 2–2.5 meters (6.6–8.2 feet) |
| Era | Cenozoic – Quaternary Period | Weight | 339 kilograms (747 pounds) |
| Classification | Mammalia, Carnivora, Feliformia | Location | Eurasia, North America |
Cave Lion Pictures
The Cave Lion
The Eurasian cave lion, scientifically called Panthera spelaea, is an extinct relative of the modern lion.
It roamed the Earth during the Late Pleistocene alongside other apex predators like gray wolves and cave hyenas.
P. spelaea looked similar to modern lions in terms of appearance and body build, but they were genetically different.
The fossils associated with the genus were first discovered at the beginning of the 19th century, and subsequent discoveries revealed that the species was widely spread on the Eurasian continent and even reached Alaska and Yukon.
Physical Characteristics
As occurs with most prehistoric species related to extant ones, P. spelaea was larger than modern-day lions. In fact, it’s considered one of the largest known lions!
Scientists estimate it measured approximately 1.2 meters (3.9 feet) tall at the shoulder, 2-2.5 meters (6–8.2 feet) long, except the tail, and 339 kilograms (747 pounds) heavy.
The modern lion (Panthera leo) has a shoulder height of 0.9–1.2 meters (3–3.9 feet) and a body length of 1.5–2.1 meters (4.9–6.9 feet), excluding the tail. Although the height and weight are somewhat similar to those of its extinct relative, P. leo weighs much less, only 120-230 kilograms (265–507 pounds).
Based on these numbers and estimations, scientists suspect that the extinct European cave lion was 12% larger than living lions.
Apart from this, the Eurasian cave lion closely resembled its modern relative. It likely had a broad chest, a short, rounded head equipped with rounded ears, and a short neck.
If the Eurasian cave lion’s body plan were similar to that of a modern lion, then its skeletal muscles would account for more than half of its body weight.
Another distinctive characteristic of modern lions is that their tails end in a tuft of dark fur, but this hasn’t been confirmed in Eurasian cave lions.
The P. spelaea fur was likely similar to that of modern lions as well, at least in terms of color, but it also had a thick undercoat, which is not known in the living form.
And the mane—how can we forget the famous mane? It grows on male lions and covers most of their heads, necks, chests, and shoulders.
The mane appears when the young step into teenagehood and their testosterone levels increase. Manes have not been observed in females.
However, is this true of the extinct cave lion as well? One would expect them to share this famous trait, right?
The truth is, P. spelaea likely had no mane, not even the males. The maned lion form appeared 320,000-190,000 years ago, and P. spelaea evolved much earlier than this.
Another difference between the cave lion and the modern lion is that the former’s muzzle was longer and narrower.
Habitat and Distribution
The Eurasian cave lion was widely distributed across Europe and Asia and even spread toward Alaska, the United States, and Yukon, Canada, through the Bering land bridge.
The Pleistocene period experienced numerous glacial cycles lasting 40,000–100,000 years. They were separated by temperate interglacials lasting roughly 10,000-15,000 years.
During the glacial periods, the planet was marked by glacier advances and cool temperatures.
During interglacials, however, temperatures rose while the tundra followed the ice sheets toward the poles, allowing forest growth.
Therefore, it would be challenging to outline the precise climate and habitat P. spalaea lived in since these varied depending on each lion’s temporal range and location.
However, scientists assume that the Asian populations lived in steppes, grasslands, and open woodlands.
Other sources suggest P. spalaea was an inhabitant of boreal forests and was found along the famous mammoth steppe, our planet’s most extensive prehistoric biome.
Although these felids are called cave lions because their fossils have been unearthed primarily from caves, scientists aren’t yet sure how much time they spent in caves.
Behavior and Diet
Naturally, Eurasian cave lions were quadrupedal predators, possibly even the main apex predators.
Considering their size and muscular build, they could probably kill almost any prehistoric creature they set their eyes on.
As such, paleontological evidence shows that P. spalaea hunted and fed on reindeer, cave bear cubs, red deer, wild horses, wisents, steppe bison, and even young woolly rhinos.
Modern lions are also known to be part-scavengers, preferring to feed on the carcasses of animals that have died from natural causes. Nevertheless, this behavior was not confirmed for P. spelaea.
It remains unknown how exactly European cave lions hunted. Some scientists believe that smaller prey was subdued with a front paw strike followed by a killing bite delivered at the back of the neck, chest, or throat.
It’s also unknown how fast the extinct lions were. If they’re similar to modern lions in this regard, then they were probably ambush predators rather than pursuit hunters.
Panthera leo individuals, for example, are known to engage only in quick, short runs of up to 48-59 km/h (30-37 mph).
Some studies show that, under certain stressful conditions, Eurasian cave lions may have engaged in cannibalistic behavior.
As opposed to modern lions, the extinct P. spalaea may have been rather solitary, which is quite interesting considering that lions are now considered the world’s most social felids because they live in groups and have complex social behaviors.
However, the solitary behavior hasn’t been fully confirmed.
Life Cycle
European cave lions were probably sexually dimorphic in terms of size; females were smaller than males.
Apart from this, very little is known about their reproductive behavior and life cycle.
On the other hand, since they were so anatomically similar to extant lions, why not presume they reproduced the same way?
Obviously, some behaviors have changed over the past hundreds of thousands of years, but at least part of what is known about modern lions and other mammals may have been valid for their extinct ancestors.
For example, Eurasian cave lions were likely viviparous, meaning they gave birth to live young. All mammals are viviparous, so this is a safe assumption.
Lions have an interesting reproductive behavior. Did you know that ovulation is stimulated by the spines of the penis? These backward-pointing spines rake the walls of the vagina, causing ovulation.
These felids are known to engage in courtship activities. Moreover, females often mate with multiple males when in heat.
After getting pregnant, females undergo a gestation period of approximately 110 days, upon which 1–4 cubs are born in an established sheltered area.
The cubs are born blind and helpless, so the mother takes care of them and moves them regularly to different den sites to avoid predators.
When the cubs are 6-8 weeks old, they return to their pride (social group) alongside their mother.
At first, the young are quite timid but learn quickly how to interact with adults.
On the other hand, since Eurasian cave lions haven’t been confirmed to have developed complex social behaviors, the young may have remained with their mothers only for longer periods.
When modern young lions reach 2-3 years old, they are considered independent and do not require parental care anymore.
It is believed they reach sexual maturity when they’re approximately 3-4 years old.
The oldest known lion reached a lifespan of 29 years. However, the lifespan of wild lions is much lower, only 12-17 years on average.
Today, most wild lions die prematurely as a consequence of confrontations with humans and other lions.
The lifespan of P. spelaea remains a mystery, although we can assume their life cycle resembled that of modern lions.
Since its fossils were unearthed alongside human fossils, we cannot rule out the possibility of confrontations and, consequently, premature lion deaths.
Additionally, other predators, like cave hyenas, may have stolen and killed lion cubs.
Evolution and History
The members of the Pantherinae subfamily separated from felines (Felinae) approximately 10-6 million years ago.
However, lion-like pantherines evolved 1.7-1.2 million years ago, having first appeared in East Africa and subsequently dispersing to Europe.
The oldest member of the Panthera genus is probably Panthera blytheae. It evolved 6 million years ago.
Panthera spelaea evolved approximately 450,000 years ago. It is believed that they existed up until 13,000 years ago.
Panthera spelaea is likely the closest relative of Panthera atrox (American lion), which evolved 340,000 years ago from an isolated P. spelaea population located south of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which covered large parts of the North American continent.
Other studies place Panthera spelaea as a sister taxon to Panthera leo, the modern lion. As per this research, the two diverged almost 2 million years ago.
When Panthera spelaea fossils were first discovered, scientists assumed it was actually a subspecies of the modern lion.
Therefore, they proposed to name it Panthera leo spelaea, but subsequent research confirmed that these lions formed a separate species.
Over the years, paleontological expeditions revealed numerous P. spelaea specimens, which confirmed that they were widely distributed across Eurasia and even reached North America!
As such, scientists proposed two subspecies that would help distinguish the populations based on their geographical distribution: Panthera spelaea vereshchagini and Panthera spelaea spelaea.
P. s. vereshchagini is often called the Beringian lion and refers to the specimens discovered in Siberia, Yukon, and Alaska. P. s. spelaea refers to the Eurasian populations.
The only difference scientists could outline between the two is that the Beringian lions were likely smaller than the European lions and had smaller teeth and skulls.
Interactions with Other Species
Since P. spalaea had a wide distribution, it probably interacted with a myriad of prehistoric species over the 400,000 years it roamed the Earth.
One thing is clear, though – it was one of the apex predators throughout its range.
The others were the gray wolves, the cave hyenas, and the brown bears. As such, the four likely competed for food.
Other competitors may have been the European Ice Age leopard, the dire wolf, and the short-faced bear.
Scientists believe that P. spalaea was a keystone species in its habitat. This means it played an essential role in the respective ecological community by maintaining its structure.
In short, if it weren’t for cave lions, the Pleistocene fauna would have been much different.
As apex predators, cave lions had quite a diverse diet, specializing in hunting various herbivores.
Their prey included cave bear cubs, wild horses, reindeer, red deer, muskox, steppe bison, and young wooly rhinos.
Studies show that reindeer were by far the most preferred prey, although some populations that competed primarily with cave hyenas focused on cave bears.
Paleontological expeditions revealed several adult cave lion skeletons deposited alongside cave bear skeletons in cave bear dens.
This indicates that cave lions may have attempted to prey on the large hibernating cave bears.
So they didn’t go only for cave bear cubs; they were bold enough to hunt the parents!
Cultural Significance
Considering that P. spalaea was a keystone species in its habitat, the discovery of its fossils brought to light noteworthy paleontological details.
If it hadn’t been for these cave lion specimens, the perspective we have on our world’s prehistoric fauna and Late Pleistocene ecological communities would have been significantly altered.
Besides this, the species’ link to the modern lion makes it even more fascinating, which is why scientists showed great interest in outlining its appearance, lifestyle, and behavior.
If you want to check out the difference between modern lions and their extinct relatives, check out the famous Mammoth: Titan of the Ice Age, where Eurasian cave lions are portrayed alongside mammoths, wooly rhinoceros, and other prehistoric creatures.
Conclusion
Panthera spelaea, also known as the steppe lion or the Eurasian cave lion, inhabited our planet 450,000-13,000 years ago during the Late Pleistocene.
Although a close relative of the modern lion, the Eurasian cave lion had some distinct characteristics and was genetically different from the extant species.
For example, it lacked the most distinctive modern lion trait – the famous mane!
It is believed that P. spelaea was roughly 12% larger than modern lions and had a longer, narrower muzzle.
Thanks to its muscular build and predatory adaptations, the Eurasian cave lion was one of the apex predators of the time and a keystone species that played a significant role in maintaining the ecological communities of the Late Pleistocene.
FAQs
Why did the Eurasian cave lion go extinct?
It remains unconfirmed why Eurasian cave lions went extinct, but some scientists believe humans may have hunted them extensively, eventually causing their extinction.
When was the last cave lion seen?
The last cave lions are thought to have gone extinct 13,000 years ago.
Sources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panthera_spelaea
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275219303_Isotopic_tracking_of_large_carnivore_palaeoecology_in_the_mammoth_steppe
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08912963.2010.546529
- https://journals.openedition.org/quaternaire/5897
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_lion
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion
- https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1017/S0952836904005242
- https://www.britannica.com/animal/lion
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1040618221002858
- https://www.darwinmuseum.ru/pages/peshernyj-lev-panthera-leo-spelaea?eng
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277379110001320
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave_bear
- https://openquaternary.com/articles/10.5334/oq.24
- https://web.archive.org/web/20120121153712/http://www.uni-mainz.de/FB/Biologie/Anthropologie/MolA/Download/Barnett%20et%20al.%202009.pdf
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275219303_Isotopic_tracking_of_large_carnivore_palaeoecology_in_the_mammoth_steppe
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