Before man climbed to the top of the food chain, wild cats were the strongest and most successful hunters. Even today, these huge predators cause fear and at the same time admiration in a person who is not a competitor to them in hunting. And yet, prehistoric cats were much better in every way, especially when it comes to hunting. Today's article presents the 10 largest prehistoric felines.

The prehistoric cheetah belongs to the same genus as today's cheetahs. His appearance was very similar to the appearance of the modern cheetah, but its ancestor was many times larger. The giant cheetah looked more like modern lion, because its weight sometimes reached 150 kilograms, so the cheetah easily hunted larger animals. According to some reports, the ancient cheetahs were able to accelerate at speeds up to 115 kilometers per hour. The wild cat lived in the territory modern Europe and Asia, but could not survive the Ice Age.




This dangerous animal does not exist today, but there was a time when xenosmilus, along with other predatory cats, headed the food chain of the planet. Outwardly, he very much resembled a saber-toothed tiger, but unlike him, xenosmilus had much shorter teeth, which were similar to those of a shark or predatory dinosaur. The formidable predator hunted from an ambush, after which he instantly killed the prey, tearing off pieces of meat from it. Xenosmilus was very large, sometimes its weight reached 230 kilograms. Little is known about the animal's habitat. The only place where it was possible to find his remains is Florida.




Currently, jaguars do not differ in particularly large sizes, as a rule, their weight is only 55-100 kilograms. As it turned out, they were not always so. In the distant past, the modern territory of the South and North America filled with giant jaguars. Unlike the modern jaguar, they had longer tails and limbs, and their size was several times larger. According to scientists, the animals lived on open plains along with lions and some other wild cats, and as a result of constant rivalry, they were forced to change their place of residence to more wooded areas. The size of a giant jaguar was equated to a modern tiger.




If the giant jaguars belonged to the same genus as modern ones, then the European jaguars belonged to a completely different one. Unfortunately, today it is still not known what the European jaguar looked like, but some information about it is still known. For example, scientists claim that the weight of this cat was more than 200 kilograms, and the habitat was such countries as Germany, England, the Netherlands, France and Spain.




Such a lion is considered a subspecies of the lion. Cave lions were incredibly large, and their weight reached 300 kilograms. Terrible predators lived in Europe after the ice age, where they were considered one of the most dangerous creatures on the planet. Some sources say that these animals were sacred animals, so they were worshiped by many peoples, and perhaps they were simply afraid. Scientists have repeatedly found various figurines and drawings depicting a cave lion. It is known that cave lions did not have a mane.




One of the scariest and dangerous representatives wild cats prehistoric time is homotherium. The predator lived in the countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, South and North America. The animal adapted so well to the climate of the tundra that it could live for more than 5 million years. The appearance of Homotherium was markedly different from the appearance of all wild cats. The front limbs of this giant were much longer than the hind limbs, which made it look like a hyena. This structure suggests that Homotherium did not jump very well, especially in contrast to modern cats. Although homoteria cannot be called the most, its weight reached a record 400 kilograms. This suggests that the beast was larger than even a modern tiger.




The appearance of the mahairod is similar to the appearance of the tiger, but it is much larger, with a longer tail and huge fangs-knives. Whether he had the characteristic stripes of a tiger is still not known. The remains of mahairod were found in Africa, which indicates its place of residence, in addition, archaeologists are convinced that this wild cat was one of the largest of those times. The weight of mahairod reached half a ton, and in size it resembled a modern horse. Rhinos, elephants and other large herbivores formed the basis of the predator's diet. According to most scholars, the appearance of the Mahairod is most accurately shown in the film of 10,000 BC.




Of all the prehistoric wild cats known to mankind, american lion ranks second in popularity after smilodon. Lions lived on the territory of modern Northern and South America, and died out about 11 thousand years ago at the very end of the ice age. Many scientists are convinced that this giant predator was relatives of today's lion. The weight of an American lion could reach 500 kilograms. There is a lot of controversy about his hunting, but most likely the beast hunted alone.




The most mysterious animal from the entire list was in second place among the largest cats. This tiger is not separate view most likely he is distant relative modern tiger. These giants lived in Asia, where they hunted very large herbivores. Everyone knows that today tigers are the largest representatives of the cat family, but such big tigers, as in prehistoric times, today is not even close. The Pleistocene tiger was unusually large, and according to the remains found, it even lived in Russia.




The most famous representative of the cat family of prehistoric times. Smilodon had huge teeth like sharp knives and a muscular body with short legs. His body slightly resembled the body modern bear, although he did not have the clumsiness that a bear has. The amazingly folded body of a predator allowed him to run with high speed even over long distances. Smilodons died out about 10 thousand years ago, which means that they lived at the same time as humans, and possibly even hunted them. Scientists believe that smilodons attacked the victim from an ambush.


Before man became a hunter and made his way to the top of the food chain, cats were the most successful and powerful predators. Even today, felines such as tigers, lions, jaguars and leopards are still admired and feared, but even they cannot outshine their extinct ancestors.

giant cheetah

The giant cheetah belongs to the same genus as modern cheetahs. And it looked similar, but was much larger. Weighing up to 150 kg, the cheetah was as big as African lion and could hunt big booty. Some suggest that the giant cheetah could accelerate to 115 km / h! This beast lived in Europe and Asia during the Pliocene and Pleistocene. Extinct during the last ice age.

Xenosmilus


Xenosmilus is a relative of Smilodon (the famous saber-toothed tiger), but instead of long, blade-like fangs, it had shorter teeth. They looked more like the teeth of a shark and a carnivorous dinosaur than the teeth of a modern cat. This creature hunted from an ambush and killed the victim, tearing out pieces of meat from it. Xenosmilus was quite large by today's standards - weighing up to 230 kg, and in size it looked like an adult lion or tiger. The remains of this cat were found in Florida.

giant jaguar


Today, jaguars are rather small animals compared to lions and tigers, usually weighing 60-100 kg. In prehistoric times, North and South America were home to giant jaguars. These cats had much longer limbs and tail than the modern jaguar. Scientists believe that jaguars lived on open plains, but due to rivalry with lions and other big cats, they were forced to find themselves more wooded area. Giant prehistoric jaguars were the size of a lion or tiger and very strong.

European jaguar


Unlike the giant jaguar mentioned, the European jaguar did not belong to the same species as modern jaguars. No one knows what this prehistoric cat looked like. Some scientists believe that most likely it looked like modern spotted felines, or maybe a cross between a lion and a jaguar. It is clear that this creature was dangerous predator, weighed up to 210 kg and was at the top of the food chain 1.5 million years ago. His remains have been found in Germany, France, England, Spain and the Netherlands.

cave lion


cave lion this is a subspecies of the lion large sizes and weighing up to 300 kg. This is one of the most dangerous and strong predators who lived during the last ice age in Europe. There is evidence that he was feared and possibly worshiped by prehistoric people. Many drawings and several figurines depicting a cave lion have been found. Interestingly, this lion was depicted without a mane.

Homotherium


Homotherium was one of the most dangerous felines in prehistoric times, lived in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa. It has adapted well to environmental conditions, including the subarctic tundra, and lived for 5 million years before its extinction 10,000 years ago. Outwardly, Homotherium differed from other large cats. The forelimbs were somewhat longer than the hind limbs, resembling a hyena. The structure of the hind limbs of Homotherium indicates that it jumped worse than modern cats. Homotherium may not have been the largest predator, but some finds show that the mass of this cat reached 400 kg, which is more than the mass of the modern Siberian tiger.

Machairod


Unlike Smilodon, which was a classic saber-toothed tiger, its short tail body proportions were different from a real tiger. Machairods, on the other hand, looked like giant tigers with saber teeth, similar proportions and a long tail. Whether the beast had stripes is unknown. Found in Chad, Africa, machairod remains suggest that this creature was one of the largest cats of all time. It weighed up to 500 kg and was the size of a horse. He hunted elephants, rhinos and other herbivores. Machairod most likely looked like a giant tiger from a 10,000 BC movie.

american lion


After Smilodon, this is probably the most famous prehistoric cat. It lived in North and South America during the Pleistocene and became extinct 11,000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age. Most scientists argue that the American lion was a giant relative of the modern lion. Its weight was 470 kg. There is some debate about his hunting technique, but he most likely hunted alone.

Pleistocene tiger


This is the most mysterious beast on the list, known from fragmentary remains. This is not a separate species, but rather an early version of the modern tiger. Tigers evolved in Asia 2 million years ago to prey on a variety of huge herbivores that lived on the continent at the time. Tigers are the largest members of the cat family. However, during the Pleistocene period, there was more food, and therefore tigers were also larger. Some remains have been found in Russia, China and the island of Java.

Smilodon


The most famous cat, which had teeth similar to a dagger or a knife with a long straight blade, can be called Smilodon. He and his close relatives were distinguished by long serrated fangs and a short-legged muscular body resembling a bear. Strong physique did not allow them to run fast over long distances, so they most likely attacked from an ambush. Well, scimitar-toothed cats relied on speed, having long limbs, like those of cheetahs, as well as not so long and more roughly serrated fangs. Smilodons became extinct 10,000 years ago, which means they lived at the same time as humans and may have hunted them.

Joseph Henri Roni Sr.


cave lion

Abridged translation from French I Orlovskaya

Drawings by L. Durasov

Part one

Chapter 1 Un and Zur

Un, the son of the Bull, liked to visit underground caves. He fished there for blind fish and colorless crayfish with Xur, son of Earth, the last of the Wa tribe, the Shoulderless Men, who survived the extermination of his people by the Red Dwarfs.

For days on end Un and Zur wandered along the stream underground river. Often its shore was just a narrow stone cornice. Sometimes I had to crawl along a narrow corridor of porphyry, gneiss, basalt. Zur lit a resin torch from the branches of a turpentine tree, and the crimson flame was reflected in the sparkling quartz vaults and in the swiftly flowing waters of the underground stream. Leaning over the black water, they watched the pale, colorless animals swimming in it, then walked on, to the place where the road was blocked by a blank granite wall, from under which an underground river burst out with noise. For a long time, Un and Zur stood idle in front of the black wall. How they wanted to overcome this mysterious barrier that the Ulamr tribe had encountered six years ago, during their migration from north to south.

Un, the son of the Bull, belonged, according to the custom of the tribe, to his mother's brother. But he preferred his father Nao, the son of the Leopard, from whom he inherited a powerful build, tireless lungs and extraordinary acuteness of feelings. His hair fell over his shoulders in thick, stiff strands, like the mane of a wild horse; the eyes were the color of gray clay. Huge physical strength made him a dangerous opponent. But even more than Nao, Un was prone to generosity, if the vanquished lay before him, prostrated on the ground. Therefore, the Ulamry, paying tribute to the strength and courage of Un, treated him with some disdain.

He always hunted alone, or with Xur, whom the Ulamry despised for being weak, though no one was so adept at finding stones suitable for making fire and making tinder from the soft core of wood.

Xur had a narrow, lizard-like body. His shoulders were so sloping that his arms seemed to come straight out of his torso. From time immemorial, all the Wa - the tribe of the Shoulderless People - looked like this. Xur thought slowly, but his mind was more sophisticated than that of the people of the Ulamr tribe.

Zur liked to visit underground caves even more than Un. His ancestors and the ancestors of his ancestors had always lived in regions abounding in streams and rivers, some of which disappeared under the hills or were lost in the depths of the mountain ranges.

One morning the friends were wandering along the river bank. They saw the crimson ball of the sun rise above the horizon and golden light flooded the surroundings. Xur knew that he liked to follow the fast-moving waves; Ung gave himself up to this pleasure unconsciously. They headed towards the underground caverns. Mountains rose in front of them, tall and impregnable. Steep, sharp peaks stretched like an endless wall from north to south, and nowhere was a passage visible between them. Un and Zur, like the rest of the Ulamr tribe, yearned passionately to overcome this invincible barrier.

For more than fifteen years, the Ulamry, having left their native places, wandered from the northwest to the southeast. Moving south, they soon noticed that the farther, the richer the land, and the more abundant the booty. And gradually people got used to this endless journey.

But a huge one stood in their way Mountain chain, and the advance of the tribe to the south stopped. The Ulamr searched in vain for a passage among the impregnable stone peaks.

Un and Zur sat down to rest in the reeds, under the black poplars. Three mammoths, huge and majestic, marched along the opposite bank of the river. You could see antelopes running in the distance; the rhinoceros appeared from behind a rocky ledge. Excitement seized Nao's son. How he wanted to overcome the space separating him from the prey!

Sighing, he got up and strode upstream, followed by Zur. Soon they found themselves in front of a dark recess in the rock, from where a river burst out with noise. The bats rushed into the darkness, frightened by the appearance of people.

Excited by the sudden thought that came into his mind, Un said to Zur:

Beyond the mountains there are other lands!

Zur replied:

The river flows from sunny countries.

People without shoulders have long known that all rivers and streams have a beginning and an end.

The blue dusk of the cave was replaced by the darkness of the underground labyrinth. Xur ignited one of the resinous branches he had taken with him. But friends could do without light - they knew so well every turn of the underground path.

The whole day Un and Zur walked along the gloomy passages along the course of the underground river, jumping over pits and clefts, and in the evening they fell asleep soundly on the shore, having supper of crayfish baked in the ashes.

During the night they were awakened by a sudden jolt that seemed to come from the very bowels of the mountain. There was a roar of falling stones, a crack of crumbling rocks. Then there was silence. And, not having understood what was the matter, the friends fell asleep again.

Vague memories took hold of Xur.

The earth shook, he said.

Und did not understand Xur's words and did not try to understand their meaning. His thoughts were short and swift. He could only think of the obstacles directly in front of him or the prey he was chasing. His impatience grew, and he kept accelerating his steps, so that Xur could hardly keep up with him. Long before the end of the second day, they reached the place where a blank stone wall usually blocked their way.

Zur lit a new resinous torch. A bright flame lit up the high wall, reflected in the countless fractures of the quartz rock.

An astonished exclamation broke out from both young men: a wide crack gaped in the stone wall!

It's because the earth was shaking, Zur said.

With one leap, Ung was at the edge of the crack. The aisle was wide enough to let a person through. Unk knew what treacherous traps lurked in the newly shattered rocks. But his impatience was so great that, without hesitation, he squeezed himself into the blackened stone gap in front of him, so narrow that it was possible to move forward with great difficulty. Zur followed the Bull's son. Love for a friend made him forget natural caution.

Soon the passage became so narrow and low that they could barely squeeze between the stones, bent over, almost crawling. The air was hot and stale, it became more and more difficult to breathe ... Suddenly, a sharp ledge of rock blocked their path.

Cave lion - a fossil subspecies of a lion that lived in the Pleistocene era (part of Quaternary period). He lived in Europe and Siberia.

Until recently, its systematic status was controversial, some considered it a separate feline species.

It is now more or less conclusively established that the cave lion was just a subspecies of the lion, although clearly distinct.

Appearance

The cave lion, like other representatives of the ancient Cenozoic fauna, was quite large. In length, it reached more than two meters, excluding the tail, and its height at the withers exceeded 120 cm.

The cave lion was larger than the current lions, but was not the largest - many of its close relatives were much larger.

Cave lions appeared about 300 thousand years ago and existed for a very long time. for a long time– until the appearance of the first human cultures. Known a large number of rock carvings of a cave lion, which helped scientists draw conclusions about its appearance:

  • The color of his coat, apparently, was uniform, without spots or stripes;
  • Many drawings depict a brush on his tail - the same as that of modern lions;
  • Almost all drawings depict a cave lion without a mane, so one might think that he did not have a mane at all or it was small.

Relationship with other extinct lions

The cave lion descended from the more ancient Mosbach subspecies that appeared in Europe about 700 thousand years ago. This lion was even larger and the size of a liger. In some sources, it is the Mosbach lions that are called cave lions, but this is incorrect and can lead to confusion.

cave lions photo

The cave lion turned out to be more hardy than its Mosbach ancestor and went far to the north, even during glaciations. Other subspecies originated from it - the East Siberian cave lion (died out only 10 thousand years ago) and the American lion, into which the cave lion turned after crossing to the American continent along the then-existing Bering bridge between Chukotka and Alaska.

Lifestyle. Nutrition

As already mentioned, the cave lion was very hardy predator and could exist even in conditions of severe glaciation. The paw prints of lions have been preserved, which are found next to the paws of reindeer. These deer appear to have been part of the diet cave lions; also lions hunted wild horses, bulls, antelopes.

In the Pleistocene deposits near German Darmstadt, the bones of a cave lion were found, on the leg of which there were traces of a serious inflammation that prevented him from walking, but later disappeared. This detail led to a grandiose conclusion: serious illness did not lead to the death of a lion - it means that other lions supplied him with food; therefore, cave lions, like their current counterparts, lived in prides.

Despite the name, cave lions rarely visited caves. They preferred to live in the open, and went into the caves during illness or in order to die. Since they most often died in caves, most of the fossils of cave lions were found there.

cave lion with prey photo

Monotony in diet (except for ungulates, cave lions occasionally hunted cave bears) could cause the extinction of these predators. In the era of global warming reindeer and cave bears began to gradually disappear, because of which the lions lost their main source of food and also began to die out.

Unlike them, modern lions attack any living creature, so they are not threatened with extinction from hunger.

History of study

The first representatives of prehistoric big cats in the north - in Yakutia - were discovered in 1891 by a researcher named Chersky. He suggested that the remains belong to ancient tigers. However, the discovery was quickly forgotten.

They remembered it almost a hundred years later, when the famous paleontologist Nikolai Vereshchagin proved that they do not belong to tigers, but to cave lions.

Vereshchagin later wrote an entire book dedicated to these fossil lions. True, at first he suggested calling them tigers, which today can lead to confusion: in our time, it is customary to call a tiger a modern hybrid of a lion and a tiger. Subsequently, the remains of cave lions were found in different places Europe, especially in Germany and France.

  • Class - Mammals
  • Squad - Carnivores
  • Family - Feline
  • Genus - Panthers
  • View - Lion
  • Subspecies - Cave lion

On our planet in different time a large number of fauna lived. However, the populations of many animals began to decline. The main factors of extinction have always been considered those associated with climate. But with the development of man, many animals disappeared forever. In this article we will talk about the disappeared wild cats.

Tasmanian tiger (marsupial tiger, Tasmanian wolf, thylacine)

One of the most mysterious animals that has been exterminated is the Tasmanian tiger.

It got its name in honor of the habitat - Tasmania. Despite the fact that to a large extent its name suggests the relationship of a mammal to the cat family, in fact it is a big misconception. Many researchers even classify the mammal as a subspecies of wild dogs.

The length of an adult individual could reach 1.4 meters without taking into account the tail. The length of the tail could exceed 60 cm. The weight of the animal is 6.35-7.7 kg.

European settlers who arrived Australian mainland, began a rapid hunt for individuals of this species, arguing that the Tasmanian tigers steal livestock. By the 1920s, the animal population had been reduced so much that scientists had to list the species in the Red Book. Man finally exterminated the Tasmanian tiger in 1936.

Caspian tiger (Persian tiger, Turanian tiger)

A feature of such tigers is long stripes along the body, as well as their brown color. In winter, whiskers appeared in the Caspian tigers, the fur in the abdomen and the entire body became very fluffy and thick.

The mass of the average Caspian tiger was 240 kg.

The Romans used the Caspian tigers in gladiator fights.

The Caspian tiger lived in Central Asia, as well as the territory North Caucasus. The rookery of the Caspian tiger could be observed up close in tropical impassable places. But they were all pretty close to the water. In just one day turanian tiger could walk more than 100 km, which indicates the endurance of an extinct animal.

The last mentions and studies related to this representative of the fauna date back to the 50s of the last century. On the territory of Turkmenistan on January 10, 1954, one of the last individuals was seen, which migrated from the northern part of Iran. According to some reports, the last Caspian tiger was shot in the southeastern part of Turkey in 1970.

Javan tiger

It got its name because of the place of its main residence - the island of Java, located in Indonesia.

Adult individuals weighed 75-141 kg, body length is about 2-2.5 meters.

It died out relatively recently - in the 1980s, due to habitat destruction, as well as poaching.

Bali tiger

The habitat is the island of Bali, which is why it was called Balinese.

It is believed that the Ballic and Javan tigers had the same ancestor.

The length of the tiger is 0.93-2.3 meters, excluding the tail, weight 65-100 kg.

Outwardly, this tiger among all subspecies was distinguished by the smallest number of black stripes. There may be dark spots between the stripes.

The tiger is often mentioned in folk tales and in fine arts peoples of Bali.

Bali tigers were destroyed by hunters. The last tiger was killed in 1937.

Pleistocene tiger

The most mysterious feline subspecies, known from fragmentary remains.

He lived in Russia, China and on the island of Java.

It is rather an early version of the modern tiger.

European cheetah (giant cheetah)

Lived on the territory of Eurasia about 500 thousand years ago.

Body length 1.3-1.5 meters excluding tail. Weight 60-90 kg. Height 90-120 cm.

Historians have discovered the remains of this cat in Europe, India and China.

Outwardly, he looked like a modern cheetah. The color of this animal remains a mystery. There are suggestions that the European cheetah had long hair.

The European cheetah most likely died out due to competition with other felids, which left no free niche for this large predator.

Miracinonyx

Possibly a distant relative of the cheetah. Probably the ancestor of the cougar.

He lived about 3 million years ago on the American continent.

Outwardly, it was similar to a modern cheetah, had a shortened skull, with enlarged nasal cavities and high teeth.

It was about the size of a modern cheetah.

Miracinonyx died out 20-10 thousand years ago due to climate change, lack of food and human hunting for it.

European jaguar (Gombastsog panther)

Lived approximately 1.5 million years ago, and is the earliest famous view genus Panthers in Europe.

European jaguars averaged around 120-160 kg. They were larger than modern jaguars.

The European jaguar was most likely a solitary animal. Lived in forests, but could also hunt in open spaces.

Pleistocene jaguar

It is believed to have descended from the giant jaguar. Appeared about 1.6 million years ago.

It was 1 meter high, 1.8-2 meters long, excluding tail, weight 150-190 kg.

Pleistocene jaguars lived in dense jungles, swampy floodplains, or coastal areas of North and South America.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

giant jaguar

Lived in North America 1.6 million years ago.

There were two subspecies of giant jaguars - North American and South American.

Jaguar had long paws and tail, and was the size of a modern lion or tiger.

Scientists believe that jaguars lived on open plains, but due to rivalry with lions and other big cats, they were forced to find more wooded areas.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

Barbary lion (Atlas lion or Nubian lion)

The mass of an adult is 100-270 kg.

This animal was considered the largest lion subspecies. The Barbarian lion differed from its counterparts in a thick and dark mane, which went far beyond its shoulders and hung down in the lower abdomen.

In the past, it could be found in Africa, in the northern part of the Sahara desert. Europeans brought it to the Roman Empire, where it was used for recreational purposes, namely, fights with the Turanian tiger.

At the beginning of the 17th century, its population declined sharply, as a result of which it was visible only in northwestern Africa. Due to the popular use of firearms against animals, as well as the existence of a targeted policy against the Barbary lion, led to a decrease in numbers in this region. The last individual was killed in 1922 in the Atlas Mountains on the territory of their Moroccan part.

cave lion

2.1 meters long, up to 1.2 meters high.

The Mosbach lion is considered the progenitor of the cave lion.

Lived in northern Eurasia.

The cave lion, despite its name, did not live in the caves, but came there only during periods of illness or old age.

It is believed that cave lions were social animals and lived, like modern lions, in prides.

american lion

He lived about 11 thousand years ago.

The body length is about 2.5 meters, excluding the tail. The American lion weighed over 400 kg.

The American lion is descended from the cave lion, whose ancestor is the Mosbach lion. Outwardly, most likely, it looked like a hybrid of a modern lion and a tiger, but, perhaps, without a huge mane.

mosbach lion

Lived about 300 thousand years ago.

The body length of an adult individual reached 2.5 meters, excluding the tail, the lions were about 1.3 meters high. The Mosbach lion weighed up to 450 kg.

It turns out that it was the largest and heaviest subspecies of the lion of all that existed.

From the Mosbach lion came the cave lion.

Xenosmilus

It inhabited the territory of modern North America about 1.8 million years ago.

Xenosmilus weighed up to 350 kg, and the body size was about 2 meters.

Xenosmilus had a powerful physique and short but strong paws, had not very long upper fangs.

Homotherium

Lived in Eurasia, Africa and North America 3-3.5 million years ago.

The ancestor of Homotheria is Machairod.

Growth of Homotherium up to 1.1 meters, weight about 190 kg.

The forelimbs are somewhat longer than the hind limbs, a short tail - Homotherium was more like a hyena than big cat. Homotherians had relatively short upper canine teeth, but were wider and serrated.

Homotheria had a difference from all cats - they saw better during the day, and not at night.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

Machairod

Lived in Eurasia, Africa and North America about 15 million years ago.

The name of the genus comes from the similarity of the teeth of its representatives with curved mahair swords. Machairods looked like giant tigers with 35 cm long saber fangs.

This Saber-toothed tiger weighed up to 200 kg and was up to 3 meters long.

They became extinct about 2 million years ago.

Smilodon

He lived in America from 2.5 million to 10 thousand years BC. e.

Smilodon was the largest saber-toothed cat, reaching a height at the withers of 1.25 meters, a length of 2.5 meters including a 30-centimeter tail and weighing from 225 to 400 kg.

He had a stocky physique atypical for modern felines. The coloration of these animals could be uniform, but most likely it was spotted, like a leopard, and the presence of a short mane in males is also possible.

Smilodon fangs were up to 29 centimeters long (including the root), and, despite their fragility, were powerful weapons.

Scientists believe that smilodons were social animals. They lived in groups. Feeding the pride females.

The name "smilodon" means "dagger tooth".

One of the famous cartoon characters Diego from the cartoon " glacial period”is just the smilodon.

Thilacosmil (Saber-toothed tiger)

Lived in South America about 5 million years ago.

It was 0.8-1.8 meters long.

It died out 2.5 million years ago, probably unable to compete with the first saber-toothed cats, in particular with Homotherium.

Outwardly, thilacosmil was a large, powerful stocky predator, with huge fangs. He was missing his upper incisors.

In general, tilacosmil was not a relative of saber-toothed tigers from the cat family, rather just a similar species that lived in the same conditions.