pardofelis

Until 2006, the classification of Pardofelis as a monotypic genus was widely accepted.

All of them diverged from the other felids about 9.4 million years ago, and have therefore been proposed to be placed in the genus Pardofelis.

Because of the evident close relationship with the marbled cat, it has recently been suggested that all three species should be grouped in the genus Pardofelis.

Pardofelis species do not stem from the Pantherinae subfamily but belong to the other main branch of mostly smaller cat species, the Felinae.

The word pardofelis is composed of the Latin words pardus pard, and felis cat in allusion to the spots of the type species, the Marbled cat.

Genetic analysis carried out at the turn of the century revealed a close genetic relationship with the Borneo bay cat Pardofelis badia and the Asian golden cat Pardofelis temminckii.

Pardofelis was first proposed by the Russian explorer and naturalist Nikolai Severtzov in 1858 as generic name comprising a single felid species occurring in tropical Asia, the marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata.

The British zoologist Reginald Innes Pocock recognized the taxonomic classification of Pardofelis in 1917 as comprising not only the marbled cat but also the Borneo bay cat Pardofelis badia, because of similarities in the shape of their skulls.