Miracinonyx

Miracinonyx, colloquially known as the American cheetah or the New World cheetah, is an extinct genus of felids belonging to the subfamily Felinae that was endemic to North America from the Pleistocene epoch (about 2.5 million to 16,000 years ago) and morphologically similar to the modern cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), although its apparent similar ecological niches have been considered questionable due to anatomical morphologies of the former that would have limited its ability to act as a specialized pursuit predator. The genus was originally known from fragments of skeletons, but nearly complete skeletons have been recovered from Natural Trap Cave in northern Wyoming.

Miracinonyx was originally established as a subgenus of the genus Acinonyx, with M. trumani assigned to as the type species. M. studeri was originally included as a second species, but it is more often listed as a junior synonym of M. inexpectatus. M. trumani was exclusive to the Rancholabrean age, while M. inexpectatus ranged from the late Blancan to Irvingtonian ages of North America.