Temporal range: late Miocene – Pleistocene
|Barbourofelis, Florida Museum of Natural History|
Schultz, Schultz & Martin, 1970
The genus was found in North America during the Miocene to Pleistocene. They lived from 13.6 – 5.3 million years ago (mya) and continued for about 8.3 million years. Its flattened saber teeth were protected by a bony flange from the lower jaw. It was a saber-toothed cat, but was not a close relative of cats such as Smilodon.
Barbourofelis has been difficult to classify. It was put in the Nimravidae by Schultz (1970) and Martin (1998).