Saber Tooth Tiger
Join us as we go back into the prehistoric era to find out more information about saber tooth tigers. Surprisingly, some of the most amazing facts about the saber tooth cats continue to elude people even today. Continue reading to know more about them.
Among the several animals species which inhabited the planet during the prehistoric times, saber tooth tigers were perhaps the most magnificent ones. These amazing creatures cohabited the planet with the woolly mammoths and mastodons, both of which were typically characterized by their large size, and even took on them in times of food scarcity. Though most of our knowledge as far as saber tooth tiger facts are concerned is restricted to its citation in popular culture, there is a lot more to know about them than what most of us actually know.
Saber Tooth Tiger Information
Smilodon was a species of saber toothed cats, endemic to the continents of North and South America. The smilodon derived its colloquial name saber tooth or saber-toothed tiger owing to its extended maxillary canine. A number of sub-species of the saber tooth tiger have been found, however only three of these have been described. These three are Smilodon gracilis, Smilodon fatalis, Smilodon populator. More information about the various aspects of this species is given below.
Appearance: Saber tooth tiger size was one of the most amazing aspect of this animal. Among the three sub-species of saber tooth tigers, Smilodon populator was the largest felid to inhabit the planet. A full-grown member of this species was known to weigh approximately 800 lbs. It had a short tail which resembled that of a bobcat, powerful hind legs, muscular neck and characteristic long canines. The fact that its shoulders were higher than its hips gave it a robust appearance. On an average, their canines would measure around 11 inches. Studies revealed that the saber tooth tiger had the ability to open its mouth as wide as a 120 degrees, which is almost the double of the lion, which can open its mouth to a mere 65 degrees.
Habitat: During the prehistoric times, saber tooth tigers inhabited the dense forests of South America as well as the rugged plains of North America. Their habitat was typically characterized by a range of plant eating mammals which were primary constituents of sabertooth dietary habits. Fossil remains recovered in various parts of these continents suggest that some sub-species of the Saber tooth inhabited the Midwestern region of the United States, while some sub-species were found as far as the snow clad regions Alaska.
Diet and Hunting: Saber tooth tigers used to feed on a range of animals including the bison, deer and ground sloths. At times, they also took on juvenile mammoths and mastodons - which were also added to the list of extinct animals somewhere around the same period. Though this species had a weaker bite, the strong muscles in its neck and upper body helped it to bring the prey down, after which they used their long canines to stab its throat and kill it. There do exist some theories according to which their robust size and hunting method, which was not suitable to hunt small and faster animals, contributed to their extinction.
Saber-tooth tigers became extinct in around 10,000 BC. It is difficult to determine as to what actually triggered the saber tooth tiger extinction, but there are a number of theories which try to explain the same. According to some of the most prominent theories, prehistoric humans killed sabertooths for food, while there are others theories which suggest that the end of the Ice Age was responsible for saber tooth extinction.
Saber Tooth Tiger Information
Smilodon was a species of saber toothed cats, endemic to the continents of North and South America. The smilodon derived its colloquial name saber tooth or saber-toothed tiger owing to its extended maxillary canine. A number of sub-species of the saber tooth tiger have been found, however only three of these have been described. These three are Smilodon gracilis, Smilodon fatalis, Smilodon populator. More information about the various aspects of this species is given below.
Appearance: Saber tooth tiger size was one of the most amazing aspect of this animal. Among the three sub-species of saber tooth tigers, Smilodon populator was the largest felid to inhabit the planet. A full-grown member of this species was known to weigh approximately 800 lbs. It had a short tail which resembled that of a bobcat, powerful hind legs, muscular neck and characteristic long canines. The fact that its shoulders were higher than its hips gave it a robust appearance. On an average, their canines would measure around 11 inches. Studies revealed that the saber tooth tiger had the ability to open its mouth as wide as a 120 degrees, which is almost the double of the lion, which can open its mouth to a mere 65 degrees.
Habitat: During the prehistoric times, saber tooth tigers inhabited the dense forests of South America as well as the rugged plains of North America. Their habitat was typically characterized by a range of plant eating mammals which were primary constituents of sabertooth dietary habits. Fossil remains recovered in various parts of these continents suggest that some sub-species of the Saber tooth inhabited the Midwestern region of the United States, while some sub-species were found as far as the snow clad regions Alaska.
Diet and Hunting: Saber tooth tigers used to feed on a range of animals including the bison, deer and ground sloths. At times, they also took on juvenile mammoths and mastodons - which were also added to the list of extinct animals somewhere around the same period. Though this species had a weaker bite, the strong muscles in its neck and upper body helped it to bring the prey down, after which they used their long canines to stab its throat and kill it. There do exist some theories according to which their robust size and hunting method, which was not suitable to hunt small and faster animals, contributed to their extinction.
Saber-tooth tigers became extinct in around 10,000 BC. It is difficult to determine as to what actually triggered the saber tooth tiger extinction, but there are a number of theories which try to explain the same. According to some of the most prominent theories, prehistoric humans killed sabertooths for food, while there are others theories which suggest that the end of the Ice Age was responsible for saber tooth extinction.
Like This Article?
Follow:
Post Comment | View Comments