Smilodon

Smilodon (Smilodon populator) was a fierce feline with sharp teeth. They were named for their sharp teeth. Smilodon meant "knife tooth". They can be called sabre-tooth cats, because of their extremely sharp teeth. And they weren't called sabre-tooth tigers, since they didn't look a lot like tigers, and are not closely related to tigers. They were carnivores, and mammals, obviously, since they were felines (in the cat family). Their closest living relatives are modern cats. Scientists say that the males had a mane, like a lion. The females didn't have a mane, according to the scientists, that made them look a bit like lionesses.

They ate large animals, mainly herbivores, like Macrauchenia. They were huge predators. They were about 1.3 metres at the shoulder, and they were deadly. They were known as the fiercest known predators in the continent. The fossils were found in Argentina and Brazil. They were immensely successful animals. Thousands of fossils were found in North America and South America. The biggest type of Smilodon is Smilodon populator, the ones that lived in South America. The North America's sabre-tooths were smaller, and they were called Smilodon fatalis.

Smilodon lived in the Pleistocene time period, and were very very successful. They were known for their sharp, knife-like teeth. They were delicate teeth, and they were easily broken, which forced the Smilodon to hunt only with their smaller, inner teeth. One Smilodon fossil was found with one broken sabre. Most fossils were found in the La Brea tar pits in California. There they were very carefully preserved. Smilodon lived 1.5-0.1 million years ago, and they lived through the first Ice Age. They almost lived into the Quaternary period, which meant they almost lived in the same time period as the first humans. Smilodon lived for a long time and they lived in both South and North America. They are very well-known now. They were very successful cats.