Thylacosmilus
genus of mammals (fossil) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thylacosmilus is a extinct genus of carnivorous sparassodont.[1] found as fossils in deposits dated from about 10 million to 3 million years ago (late Miocene to late Pliocene epoch) in Argentina, South America.
Thylacosmilus | |
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Thylacosmilus atrox Field Museum of Natural History | |
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Family: | Thylacosmilidae |
Genus: | Thylacosmilus Riggs, 1933 |
Thylacosmilus was sabre-toothed and was about as large as a modern jaguar. To a remarkable degree, Thylacosmilus paralleled the evolution of felid sabre-toothed cats like Smilodon. Its canine teeth were long and powerfully developed; they were used for stabbing prey. Its killing method was to hold its prey, and make deep bites into the soft tissue driven by powerful neck muscles.[2][3] The canine teeth were protected by a well-developed flange, or projecting edge, in the chin region of the lower jaw. The canines continued to grow during adult life, which they do not in marsupials or placental mammals.[4]
Thylacosmilus died out during the late Pliocene, whereas saber-toothed cats did not get to South America until the middle Pleistocene epoch.[5][6] As a result, the last appearance of Thylacosmilus is separated from the first appearance of Smilodon by over one and a half million years.