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Dinaelurus is a genus of the Nimravidae, an extinct family of feliform mammalian carnivores, also known as "false saber-toothed cats". Assigned to the subfamily Nimravinae, Dinaelurus was endemic to North America during the Oligocene epoch (30.8—20.6 mya), existing for approximately 10.2 million years.[1]
| Dinaelurus Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Suborder: | Feliformia |
| Family: | †Nimravidae |
| Subfamily: | †Nimravinae |
| Genus: | †Dinaelurus Eaton, 1922 |
| Species: | †D. crassus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Dinaelurus crassus Eaton, 1922 | |
Dinaelurus was named by George Francis Eaton in 1922, with a single species, Dinaelurus crassus. It was assigned to Nimravinae by Flynn and Galiano in 1982.[2][3] One specimen was found in the John Day Formation in Oregon.
Dinaelurus had a skull extremely broad for its length and had conical teeth; it exhibited little or no development of sabertooth features and had more rounded cheek teeth with no serrated ridges. It had a relatively gracile skeleton[4] and may have had digitigrade feet.[5] It is believed that Dinaelurus was a cursorial predator that ran down its prey. This is suggested by the nimravid's short face[4] and large nostrils, similar to those of a cheetah, which is also a cursorial predator.[5]
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