ULTRA RARE INTACT CARNASSIAL TOOTH WITH ROOT FROM PLEISTOCENE MARGAY CAT

Santa Fe River - Florida, U.S.A.

LATE PLEISTOCENE PERIOD:  20,000 - 10,000 years ago

You could easily spend an entire life of fossil hunting in North America and never hope to find such a rare tooth as this.  This is a complete M1 carnassial Pleistocene fossil tooth WITH FULL ROOT from the neotropical cat known as the Margay, species Leopardus wiedii.  Very limited fossil remains of this species are scientifically known from North American deposits.  If you appreciate owning specimens that most museums lack, then this is the perfect opportunity to acquire something truly worth bragging about.  Felids are amongst the rarest type of animal to find quality fossils of.  The demand and interest in these elusive and dangerous predators from the past is steadily increasing while there always has been such a very limited supply of fine grade preserved remains.  For the ultimate display fossil collection of extinct North American predators, owning a rare tooth such as this simply elevates your collection to a level on or exceeding what most museums can offer to the public.  This wonderful prize fossil tooth comes from the private collection of the original discoverer.  It is the first time and likely only time we might have remains from such a rare species of extinct cat from North America's last Ice Age.  This tooth is perfect and complete with not a single bit of damage.  Boot root lobes are perfect and intact.  Crown is perfect with fine mottled enamel and a sharp cutting edge to the tooth.  NO REPAIR and NO RESTORATION.

The margay cat is also known as the Long Tail Spotted Cat.  During the last Ice Age in North America, this predator existed but died off during the end of the final days of the Pleistocene.  Today, this cat has survived in Central and South America but is considered endangered in the northern region of its habitat. 

The margay is a very long, graceful spotted feline with an excellent ability to climb trees.  It possesses claws and ankle joints able to rotate 180 degrees.  The margay can literally run straight down a tree, head-first and run beneath tree branches in an inverted manner like a monkey!  It lives in only forested areas and hunts exclusively at night, feeding on small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects found in the trees.  The average body length is 25 - 27 inches and weight is 4.5 - 6.5 pounds.

ULTRA RARE PREDATORY CAT FOSSIL - AN AMAZING FIND EVEN IN SEVERAL LIFETIMES OF FOSSIL HUNTING!

.65" in length

$295     LM59-001     INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX     Actual Item - One Only

295