PLEISTOCENE OF EUROPE, NORTH AFRICA, AND NORTH AMERICA 423 



Upper Pleistocene lions (Felis spe/oea), descended from the great cats of the 

 Pliocene of France and Italy (Felis arvernensis). The fact that the remains 

 of this animal are so often found together with those of the cold fauna makes 

 Nehring's suggestion ^ seem plausible that the cave lion was a northern 

 race of the recent African and West Asiatic lion, adapted to a colder climate 

 and with heavy fur. These lions are known from deposits in England, 

 Belgium, Austria, southern Russia, France, Spain, and Italy, Sicily, Greece, 

 and Algeria.^ After examination of available specimens from central and 

 northern Europe, Boule ^ reaches the conclusion that they are not remains of 

 tigers as was formerly supposed by de Blainville and Lartet. Wliile rich in 

 individual variations, F. spelcea is nearer the lion than the tiger in some of 

 its characters; it should, in fact, be considered a veritable race of the recent 

 lion with the name Felis leo spelcea. It sometimes equals and often surpasses 

 the existing lions and tigers in size. It differs from both in the more gentle 

 and uniform slope of its profile, and in its large, flat forehead, but its limb 

 bones are longer and proportionately thicker. 



The bears (Ursus spelceus) were far more numerous than the lions, in- 

 cluding a gigantic and a smaller variety (Ursus suh-spelceus) . The former 

 nearly equaled the largest recent bears in size, and all of the cave bears 

 were more thickset than any of the recent species. The front paws 

 were of tremendous size. When one considers that the claw-bearing pha- 

 langes are feebly developed, that the anterior premolars are practically 

 lost, and that the cusps of the teeth are blunted in a way which is indicative 

 of an omnivorous diet, it becomes plain that the large Herbivora and even 

 primitive man found no very formidable enemy in the cave bear. While the 

 large and small races of U. spelcea were contemporary, there are certain 

 indications that the smaller was the older, being found at Mosbach during 

 early interglacial deposits. Both races became extinct in the Pleistocene 

 without leaving descendants. The ancestor of the bro\vn bear (Ursus 

 arctos prisons), believed to be a descendant of the Etruscan bear of the 

 Norfolk interglacial, is also found in Pleistocene caves; it is not so large 

 as the cave bear, but while it has been mistakenly identified with the 

 grizzly (Ursus horribilis), in reality it has closer affinities to the European 

 browTi bear (Ursus arctos). 



The cave hyaena (Hyoena crocuta spelcea) and the cave wolf (Canis lupus) 

 of the same period also attained dimensions greater than their living allies.^ 

 The cave hyaena is merely a variety of the living spotted hyaena (Hyccna 

 crocuta) of east Africa. It has the larger proportions, the heavier build, 

 the broad skull, the long, powerful carnassial teeth that distinguish the 



' Nehring, A., Uber Tundren und Steppen der Jetzt- vind Vorzoit, mit l)csondoror Bc- 

 riicksichtigung ihrer Fauna. Berlin, 1890. 



2 Boule, M., Les Grands Chats des Cavernes. Ann. PaleonL, Vol. I, Paris, Jan., 1006, 

 pp. 20-27. 



•^ Gaudry, A., and Boulo, M., Matoriaux pour I'Histoire des Temps Quaternaires. 4i6me 

 Fasc. Les Oubliettes de Gargas. Paris, 1892, pp. 108-112. 



