Everything about Smilodon Populator totally explained
Smilodon populator ("the devastating
Smilodon") 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, and is the largest know variety of saber-toothed cat at about the same size as the
Siberian Tiger, standing at 120 cm at the shoulder. The weight range has been estimated at somewhere between 200 to 300 kg (400 to 600 lbs), possibly up for the largest males. It had sabers which could be 18 to 20 centimeters (7 to 8") long and were used for making the cat's 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.
It is strongly suspected that
S. populator outcompeted the indigenous saber-toothed
marsupial,
Thylacosmilus, 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. Theories include climate change at the end of the last
ice age causing an adverse change in vegetation and prey, and human encroachment.
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