Abstract: relationships among extant felid taxa are controversial. A historical appraisal addresses component congruence among statements on felid phylogenetic relationships, and monophyly of generic ranks proposed for felids is discussed. Felid cranial morphology (especially the masticatory apparatus, basicranium, and rostral regions) is examined, and 44 characters are postulated for 39 taxa. Internal congruence for these characters is evaluated and 27 components are suggested. Parsimony analysis, using the successive weighting option of Hennig86, of the 44 cranial characters plus 13 other morphological features yields 29 components in a “modified Nelson” consensus cladogram. Two basal, well resolved clades are hypothesized in the total morphology analysis; under parenthetical notation the first is: (Hepailurus yagouaroundi (Puma concolor (Acinonyx jubatus (Uncia uncia (Neofelis nebulosa (Panthera tigris (P. onca, P. leo, and P. pardus)))))). The second clade is: Profelis temmincki (P. badia (Pardofelis marmorata ((Caracal caracal (Lynx rufus (L. lynx (L. pardina (L. canadensis)))) (Felis chaus (F. lybica (L. cafra (L. silvestris (F. bieti (F. nigripes (F. margarita (Octocolobus manul)))))))). Prionailurus planiceps and P. viverrina formed another group which is suggested as the basal branch of the felid phylogeny. The results in this study do not support monophyly of Leopardus Gray, 1841; Profelis Severtzon, 1858; and Prionailurus Severtzon, 1858. A better supported, more highly resolved, felid phylogenetic tree is needed.

Abstract: Letter to Nature Editor, in response to: In their plea for bringing Pleistocene wildlife to the New World (“Re-wilding North America” Nature 436, 913–914; 2005), Josh Donlan and colleagues do not discuss successful efforts to ensure long-term survival of large carnivores in Africa and Asia. A few examples are given.

Abstract: The snow leopard (Uncia uncial Schreber, 1776) is the most poorly studied species of the cat family in the world and, in particular, in Russia, where the northern periphery of the species area (no more than 3% of it) is located in the Altai-Hangai-Sayan range [1]. It is generally known that the existing data on the Russian part of the snow leopard population have never been a result of targeted studies; at best, they have been based on recording the traces of the snow leopard vital activity [2]. This is explained by the snow leopard's elusive behavior, inaccessibility of its habitats for humans, and its naturally small total numbers in the entire species area. All published data on the population status of the snow leopard in Russia, from the first descriptions of the species [3-6] to the latest studies [7, 8] are subjective, often speculative, and are not confirmed by
quantitative estimates. It is obvious, however, that every accurate observation of this animal is of particular interest [9]. The purpose of our study was to determine the structure and size of the population group presumably inhabiting the Western Sayan mountain ridge at the northern boundary of the species area

Abstract: Twenty-five years ago, the snow leopard Uncia uncia, an endangered large cat, was eliminated from what is now Sagarmatha National Park (SNP). Heavy hunting pressure depleted that area of most medium-large mammals, before it became a park. After three decades of protection, the cessation of hunting and the recovery of wild ungulate populations, snow leopards have recently returned (four individuals). We have documented the effects of the return of the snow leopard on the population of its main wild prey, the Himalayan tahr Hemitragus jemlahicus, a 'near-threatened' caprin. Signs of snow leopard presence were recorded and scats were collected along a fixed trail (130 km) to assess the presence and food habits of the snow leopard in the Park, from 2004 to 2006. Himalayan tahr, the staple of the diet, had a relative occurrence of 48% in summer and 37% in autumn, compared with the next most frequent prey, musk deer Moschus chrysogaster (summer: 20%; autumn: 15%) and cattle (summer: 15%; autumn: 27%). In early summer, the birth rate of tahr (young-to-female ratio: 0.8-0.9) was high. The decrease of this ratio to 0.1-0.2 in autumn implied that summer predation concentrated on young tahr, eventually altering the population by removing the kid cohort. Small populations of wild Caprinae, for example the Himalayan tahr population in SNP, are sensitive to stochastic predation events and may be led to almost local extinction. If predation on livestock keeps growing, together with the decrease of Himalayan tahr, retaliatory killing of snow leopards by local people may be expected, and the snow leopard could again be at risk of local extinction. Restoration of biodiversity through the return of a large predator has to be monitored carefully, especially in areas affected by humans, where the lack of important environmental components, for example key prey species, may make the return of a predator a challenging event.