Sabre-toothed cat
| Sabre-toothed cat (extinct) | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom Information | |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum Information | |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class Information | |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Order Information | |
| Order | Carnivora |
| Family Information | |
| Family | Felidae |
| Sub-family | Machairodontinae |
| Genus Information | |
| Genus | Smilodon |
| Species Information | |
| Species | S. fatalis S. gracilis S. populator |
| Subspecies | S. fatalis californicus S. fatalis floridus |
| Population statistics | |
Sabre-toothed cat refers to a number of extinct large felids of the sub-family Machairodontinae, especially the genus Smilodon, and characterized by a pair of large knife-like teeth from which the animals get their name.
Description
From remains of individuals recovered in the Americas, the saber-tooth cat was stocky, giving it a bear-like appearance rather than the lean, sinuous look found in present-day cats. Its forelimbs were larger and more heavily muscled than its hindlimbs, with a slight front-to-back slope, and its tail was short. The saber-tooth cat weighed an estimated 500-750 pounds, about the size of a modern lion or tiger. Some scientists speculate that the saber-tooth's overall structure suggests an animal that stalked and hunted prey by ambush; skeletal remains found in Rancho La Brea that show healing from injuries also suggest it may have been social.
Its most distinctive feature, and what made the saber-tooth one of the better-known prehistoric animals, was its 8-inch canines, which jutted from the upper jaw. These canines also had serrated edges, allowing them to cut through skin and flesh with ease, while the lower jaw could swing open to 120 degrees to use them as stabbing weapons; however, computer modeling suggests the bite itself was relatively weak. This had led scientists to determine that the most likely use for them was to stab and cut through the vital neck arteries and windpipe or the lower abdomen in a single maneuver; certainly the large muscular forequarters would have aided in the control and subduing of its prey just prior to their use, where they died quickly through rapid blood loss or shock. Its prey at the time would have been the large megafauna (mammoths, ground sloths, bison, etc.) which co-existed with it.
Saber-toothed cats used to be called "sabertooth tigers." Since then, scientists have confirmed that saber-toothed cats are not true relatives of tigers.
Origins
There are two views of thought as to the origins of the sabre-tooth cat: the first is a slow change over time via the process described in the theory of evolution, while the other states a direct creation via an act of God.
Evolutionary model
According to evolution, the sabre-tooth cat had its origins in the Oligocene Epoch, (about 36,000,000 years ago) with an ancestor called Hoplophoneus; by the Pliocene Epoch (1.6,000,000 years ago) they were in Asia and Africa, and by the Pleistocene (30,000 years ago) they had entered South America. During this period of time they had evolved in size until Smilodon populator, one of the largest cats of any kind. It is assumed that the sabre-tooth became extinct at the end of the Pleistocene, 10,000 years ago.
Creation model
Creation science argues that the sabre-tooth was created with the rest of terrestrial animal life on the sixth day according to the Bible. This argument is supported by the fossil record which shows the remains of fully-developed animals; to date there have been no examples of transitional fossils found, and the evolution of the sabre-tooth as currently described by main stream science cannot be proven under the four steps of the Scientific method.