Webosaurs Blog

Iz all up in ur habitatz, eating ur herbivorez

Q: What was the fiercest prehistoric cat of them all? -Irvine

A: Well well well, Irvine. This is a great question. Obviously, sabre toothed cats and wooly mammoths and the like came long after the time of the dinosaurs, in the Early Pleistocene. You bring up a great point about the cats though, because most everyone knows about the famed Smilodon AKA “sabre toothed tiger” but did you know there were many other sabre toothed cats at this time?

There are at least 40 known genera of sabre toothed cats from the Pleistocene, and not all of them even come from the same family! For some reason, multiple groups of mammals evolved to have giant sharp teeth protruding out of their mouths. Nature has a funny way of experimenting with ways to eat other animals!

Who knew Little Fang was so lethal?

We can’t really say for sure which one was the MOST fierce, because you have to admit they’re all pretty gnarly. We’d have to go with Smilodon though, as they were the biggest of all of them. Some of them weighed up to 1,200 lbs (500 kg) !! That is how much a grizzly bear can weigh. Yeah, these guys were nasty. Add giant teeth that grew to 11 inches (28 cm) long and you’ve got a prehistoric killing machine on your hands.

-Rex

Gas escapes from the La Brea tar pits

Q: What exactly are tar pits? Destructor

A: This is a great question, Destructor. I’m sure a few of you have noticed the tar pits found in the new member’s caves. Those are based off a few real world locations like the La Brea tar pits in Los Angeles.

The explanation can be a little confusing. What happens is subterranean bitumen (black, sticky, tar-like petroleum) leaks to the surface creating big pools of naturally occurring asphalt. The tar pits today have existed since the Pleistocene, capturing wooly mammoths, saber-toothed tigers and other ancient mammals in their grasp.

We find a lot more predators than prey in these tar pits. What happens is that a prey animal like a wooly mammoth would get caught in the tar pit. Predators would see this helpless food stuck in the pit and try to enter themselves, getting caught in the process. Scores of well preserved fossils have been found in the tar pits because of this.

At least when we get stuck in the tar pit we don’t have to stay there forever!

-Rex