Big Cat Missing Link

A fossil recently found in the Zanda Basin in Tibet included remains of Pantera blytheae, a new species of big cat that is most closely related to the modern day snow leopard.

The skull of P. blytheae is the oldest big cat fossil found to date, and fills a significant gap in the fossil record. It indicates that ancient big cats lived nearly 6 million years ago, 2 million years earlier than previously thought, and sheds light on their geographic origins in Asia.

http://newsdesk.si.edu/releases/smithsonian-scientist-confirms-missing-link-big-cat-evolution

Illegal Maiming and Killing of Bobcats and Mountain Lions

A Mesa County outfitter and his assistant guide were indicted Tuesday on allegations that they conspired to lead clients on illegal hunts in Western Colorado and Utah between 2007 and 2010, state and federal officials announced.

Christopher W. Loncarich, 55, of Mack, and Nicholaus J. Rodgers, 30, of Medford, Ore., were hit with a 17-count indictment related to their alleged practice of illegally capturing and maiming mountain lions and bobcats in order to make hunting the cats easier for their clients, the U.S. Department of Justice announced in a Wednesday news release.

The men are charged with conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act, interstate felony transportation and sale of unlawfully taken wildlife, and felony creation of false records concerning wildlife that was sold in interstate commerce.