Snow leopards roamed ancient Portugal, fossils reveal
Extraordinary discovery in Portugal. A fossil of a snow leopard, an animal currently found in Central Asia, has been uncovered. The latest discovery indicates that 300,000 years ago, the animal was also commonly found on the Iberian Peninsula.
In Portugal, a fossil of a snow leopard, also known as an ibex, was discovered, suggesting that this currently rare species from Central Asia might have once been widely distributed on the Iberian Peninsula approximately 300,000 years ago. According to information provided by the authorities of the Geological Museum in Lisbon, it was within the collections of this institution that an international team of scientists found a well-preserved fossil of a skull, along with fragments of snow leopard bones.
Research suggests that the migration of the snow leopard to Europe may have been related to climatic changes at the end of the ice ages. Around 500,000 years ago, temperature changes in Central Asia led snow leopards to migrate towards China and into Europe. Scientists are examining other fossils, hoping to discover more bones belonging to this species, which naturally inhabits the Himalayas.
Analysis of the bones suggests that these animals lived at relatively low altitudes, preferring rocky and uneven terrain in a cold climate, rather than necessarily high mountains. Research also indicates that the animal had strong limbs and a long tail, which aided in maintaining balance and performing long jumps.
Research is still ongoing
A team of palaeontologists is studying the environmental conditions in which the snow leopard specimen discovered in the Algar da Manga Larga cave, located in the Serras de Aire e Candeeiros Natural Park in central-western Portugal, lived. Scientists are also analysing the neuroanatomy of this predator, focusing on the structure of its nervous system.
This discovery provides new information on the snow leopard's adaptation to different environments, including its ability to live in lower mountainous regions. Neuroanatomical studies offer a better understanding of the evolution and functioning of the nervous system of these predators.
