Smilodon populator
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
|
Extinct (fossil)
|
||||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Smilodon populator Lund, 1842 |
Smilodon populator ("the Smilodon that brings devastation") was a machairodontine saber-toothed cat species. Smilodon populator first appeared in South America about 1 million years ago and became extinct about 10,000 years ago. It was much larger than its cousins, Smilodon fatalis and Smilodon gracilis, possessing a massive chest and front legs. Standing at 120 cm at the shoulder, it was the size of a large lion. The weight range has been estimated at somewhere between 200 and 300 kg (400 and 600 lbs). It had sabers wich could be 7 to 8" long and were used for making the cats prey bleed to death while being held down by powerful forelimbs. these large canines were flat and wide with serrated edges.
The genus Smilodon was described by the Danish naturalist and palaeontologist Peter Wilhelm Lund in 1841. He found the first fossils of Smilodon populator in caves near the small town of Lagoa Santa, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.
When North America collided with the South American land mass, the North American populations of Smilodon moved into the south and into the territory of the Terror Bird, which stood ten feet tall (3 m). A fierce competition developed between the top predators of the North and South Americas. The Birds were out-matched by the mammals, and 1 million years ago when the Smilodon populator was at the peak of its existence the Terror Birds soon became extinct.
Another animal that Smilodon out-competed was Thylacosmilus the marsupial saber tooth cat, which also lived in South America. The competition for prey (such as the Toxodon and Macrauchenia), led them into rivalry and eventually led to the extinction of the marsupial sabre-tooth.
It is unknown what caused the abrupt extinction of Smilodon. Possible theories include climate change at the end of the last ice age causing an adverse change in vegetation and prey, and human encroachment.
 |
This article about a carnivore is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
