Machairodus
| Machairodus | ||||||||||||
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Skull of Machairodus giganteus |
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| Temporal occurrence | ||||||||||||
| Miocene to Pliocene | ||||||||||||
| 15 to 2 million years | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Machairodus | ||||||||||||
| Kaup , 1833 | ||||||||||||
Machairodus (from ancient Greek ἡ μάχαιρα - the sword blade (s. Makhaira ) or μάχεσθαι (máchesthai) - fight and ὁ ὀδών, τοῦ ὀδόντος (odón, odontos) - of the tooth) is a genus of the extinct group of the saber-toothed cats (Machairodontinae) which was commonin Europe , Asia , Africa, and North America with a number of species during the Miocene and Pliocene .
Appearance
Different species of the genus Machairodus developed a number of diverse appearances and characteristics during their existence, but one thing they all had in common, namely the jagged edges of their long saber-like canines, although these edges wore off in a few years of life. In contrast to other saber cats such as Smilodon , Machairodus had relatively short fangs, but they were relatively longer than today's big cats. Some species of the genus could reach a body weight of 220 kg. The shoulder height of Marchairodus aphanistus was around one meter and Machairodus coloradensis around 1.2 m.
Systematics
Internal systematics of the Machairodontinae according to Piras et al. 2018
| Machairodontinae |
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Forms and development
Machairodus probably first appeared in Eurasia in the Middle Miocene around 15 million years ago and disappeared around two million years ago. Presumably he became the ancestor of the genus Homotherium , which developed in the Pliocene . Several species of the genus Machairodus have been described, but it is not certain that all are valid. In general, a distinction is made between two basic types within the genus: A rather primitive type, such as Machairodus aphanistus , which has been found in large parts of Eurasia and was described in North America under the synonym Nimravides catacopsis , and a more developed type, which is the Eurasian species Machairodus giganteus and the similar North American species Machairodus coloradensis included. The former was characterized by a typical cat's body, while the latter had elongated forelimbs that now appeared more hyena-like in structure, and the teeth in these forms were more flattened.
literature
- Alain Turner, Mauricio Antón: The big cats and their fossil relatives. An illustrated guide to their evolution and natural history. Columbia University Press, New York NY 1997, ISBN 0-231-10229-1 .
- Jordi Augusti, Mauricio Antón: Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids. 65 Million Years of Mammalian Evolution in Europe. Columbia University Press, New York NY et al. 2002, ISBN 0-231-11640-3 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Paolo Pirasa, Daniele Silvestro, Francesco Carotenuto, Silvia Castiglione, Anastassios Kotsakis, Leonardo Maiorino, Marina Melchionna, Alessandro Mondanaro, Gabriele Sansalone, Carmela Serio, Veronica Anna Vero, Pasquale Raia: Evolution of the sabertooth mandible: A deadly ecomorphological specialization. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 496, 2018, pp. 166–174, doi: 10.1016 / j.palaeo.2018.01.034
