The Fascinating World of Ice Age Animals

Ice Age creatures like woolly mammoths, giant sloths and saber-toothed cats were masters at adapting to cold climates – learn why their giant sizes helped them survive this period of time.

How could this plant-eating animal protect itself? A fossil of Glyptotherium (glip-toh-THERE-um) revealed it had bite marks from an animal related to Smilodon?

Woolly Mammoth

The iconic woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) is one of the best-known Ice Age creatures. While it thrived during Pleistocene times, much of its habitat disappeared as climate change caused major losses for this large herbivore species. Eventually they died out.

Mammoths were known for having four large molars and impressive tusks to help it break up tough vegetation, while their long, thick fur provided insulation from cold environments.

The mammoth steppe, its Arctic range, covered parts of Northern Asia, Europe, and North America. At the end of the last Ice Age its population had been reduced to two small populations on Saint Paul Island off Alaska and Wrangel Island off Siberia – both populations became extinct within four millennia of each other.

Saber-Toothed Tiger

Saber-toothed tigers (Smilodon) are one of the best-known Ice Age animals, known for their pair of daggerlike canines that protruded from their mouths. But fossil evidence demonstrates they were more than mere predators: pack animals with long canines to cut and stab prey rather than crush bones; their jaws opened 120 degrees – twice wider than needed by modern large cats!

Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae was an ancient pre-mammal that lived in prehistoric Brazil. With large teeth that were more suitable for crushing than piercing, Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae belonged to a group called Machaeroidines that existed prior to true cats coming onto the scene; its eventual demise may have been the result of climate change or hunting activities.

Giant Ground Sloth

With foot-long claws, this huge ground sloth was an intimidating sight. One of the best-preserved fossils of its type, it not only contains bones and claws but also an intact piece of original skin covered in hairy patches.

Paleontologists believe this specimen belongs to the species Nothrotheriops, a large black bear-sized reptile. Unfortunately, it stumbled into a volcanic gas vent and died, leaving behind its amazing well-preserved remains.

Thomas Jefferson received these bones from a cave in West Virginia from a friend, initially believing they belonged to a large lion he named Megalonyx (“great claw”). Later, while writing an essay for American Philosophical Society he encountered an engraving showing sloth skeleton and realized his mistake.

Glyptotherium

Glyptotherium was an armored armadillo-like mammal native to South and North America that belonged to the clade Xenarthra; other members include anteaters, extinct ground sloths, pampatheres and pampatheres.

This herbivore had an enormous carapace composed of thousands of interconnecting osteoderms resembling bone. Additionally, its tail was covered by plates of bone.

Glyptotherium skulls found in Southeastern Arizona exhibit two distinctive, elliptical holes punched into the top surface that may have been caused by Smilodon fatalis, the predatory cat which killed capybaras by attacking them and puncturing them with holes, similarly damaging subadult Glyptotherium skulls as the adult species was. One possible explanation could be an attack by this same cat which attacked and killed both species simultaneously.

Smilodon

Smilodon, better known by its scientific name saber-toothed cat), was one of the best-known Ice Age animals. This large carnivore served as one of the main predators against ungulates like cattle and bison during North America’s late Pleistocene period; commonly called “tiger”, but not closely related to modern cats like tigers or modern felines.

Smilodon was an extinct machairodontine subfamily of felines that featured large, saber-shaped upper canine teeth with serrated surfaces and oval cross sections.

Rancho La Brea tar pit fossils of Smilodon reveal that this predator had long front incisors which could be used to tear flesh away from prey, while fossil hyoid bones indicate these cats could communicate via roars and hunted in groups similar to lion prides.