 Analysis of their mitochondrial DNA indicates a genetic divergence from "Felis" at around .Both models agree in the jungle cat ("F. chaus") having been the first "Felis" species that diverged, followed by the black-footed cat ("F. nigripes"), the sand cat ("F. margarita"), the African wildcat ("F. lybica") and then the European wildcat.Fossil remains of small wild cats found in Europe indicate that the European wildcat probably descended from "Felis lunensis" in the Villafranchian more than , a transition that was completed by the Holstein interglacial about 340,000 to 325,000 years ago.