Saber-toothed tiger vs cave lion who is bigger. Saber-toothed tigers. Ancient saber-toothed tiger. Saber tooth period

Saber-toothed tigers are formidable and dangerous predators of the cat family, completely extinct in ancient times. hallmark these animals had upper fangs of impressive size, shaped like sabers. What is known about saber-toothed cats by modern scientists? Were these animals tigers? What did they look like, how did they get used to living, and why did they disappear? Let's fast forward through the thickness of the centuries - to those times when huge ferocious cats, going hunting, confidently walked the planet with the gait of true animal kings ...

Cat or tiger?

First of all, it should be noted that the term "saber-toothed tigers", which seems so familiar, is actually incorrect.

Biological science knows the subfamily of saber-toothed cats (Machairodontinae). However, with tigers, these ancient animals have exceptionally little common features. In the first and second, the proportions and structure of the body differ significantly, they are connected to the skull in different ways. mandibles. In addition, the striped "brindle" coloring is not typical for any of the saber-toothed cats. Their way of life is also different from that of tigers: paleontologists suggest that these animals were not loners, living and hunting in prides, like lions.

However, since the term "saber-toothed tigers" is used almost universally, and even in scientific literature, further we will also use this beautiful allegory.

Tribes of saber-toothed cats

Until 2000, the subfamily of saber-toothed cats, or machairodonts (Machairodontinae), united three large tribes.

Representatives of the first tribe, Machairodontini (sometimes also called Homoterini), are distinguished by exceptionally large upper fangs, wide and serrated on the inside. When hunting, predators relied more on the impact of this crushing "weapon" than on the bite. The smallest cats of the Machairod tribe were commensurate with a small modern leopard, the largest exceeded the size of a very large tiger.

The saber-toothed tigers of the second tribe, Smilodontini, are characterized by longer upper canine teeth, but they were much narrower and not as serrated as those of the Machairods. Their downward fangs attack was the most deadly and perfect among the representatives of all saber-toothed cats. As a rule, smilodons were the size of an Amur tiger or lion, however American mind this predator belongs to the glory of the largest saber-toothed cat in history.

The third tribe, Metailurini, is the most ancient. That is why the teeth of these animals are, as it were, a "transitional stage" between the fangs of ordinary and saber-toothed cats. It is believed that they separated from other machairodonts quite early, and their evolution took place somewhat differently. Due to the rather weak expression of the "saber-toothed" signs, representatives of this tribe began to be attributed directly to the cats, considering them "small cats", or "pseudo-saber-toothed". Since 2000, this tribe is no longer included in the subfamily of interest to us.

Saber tooth period

Saber-toothed cats inhabited the Earth quite for a long time- more than twenty million years, appearing for the first time in the early Miocene and finally disappearing in the late Pleistocene period. During all this time, they gave rise to many genera and species, significantly differing in appearance and size. However, hypertrophied upper fangs (in some species they could reach more than twenty centimeters in length) and the ability to open their mouths very widely (sometimes even one hundred and twenty degrees!) Traditionally made up their common features.

Where did saber-toothed cats live?

These animals were characterized by an ambush attack. Having pressed the victim to the ground with powerful front paws or dug into her throat, the saber-toothed tiger instantly cut her carotid artery and trachea. The accuracy of the bite was the main weapon of this predator - after all, fangs stuck in the bones of prey could break. Such a mistake would be fatal for an unfortunate predator, depriving him of the ability to hunt and thereby dooming him to death.

Why did saber-toothed cats become extinct?

In the Pleistocene, or " ice age", covering the period from two million to twenty-five to ten thousand years ago, many large mammals gradually disappeared - cave bears, woolly rhinos, giant sloths, mammoths and saber-toothed tigers. Why did this happen?

During the period of glacial cooling, many plants rich in proteins, which served as the usual food for giant herbivores, died out. At the end of the Pleistocene period, the climate on the planet became warmer and much drier. The forests were gradually replaced by open grassy prairies, but the new vegetation, adapted to the changed conditions, did not have the nutritional value of the former. Herbivorous sloths and mammoths gradually died out, not finding enough food. Accordingly, there were fewer animals that could be hunted by predators. The saber-toothed tiger, an ambush hunter for big game, turned out to be a hostage to the current situation. The structural features of its jaw apparatus did not allow it to prey on small animals, its massive build and short tail did not make it possible to catch up with swift-footed prey in open areas, which were becoming more numerous. The changed conditions led to the fact that the ancient tigers with saber fangs did not get a chance to survive. Slowly, but inexorably, all the varieties of these animals that exist in nature disappeared from the face of the Earth.

Without exception, all saber-toothed cats are completely extinct animals that did not leave direct descendants.

Machairods

Of all known to science representatives of saber-toothed cats, it was mahairod who most of all resembled a tiger. In nature, there were several types of mahairods, which had significant differences in appearance, but they were united by jagged edges of long upper fangs, shaped like "mahairs" - curved swords.

These ancient animals appeared in Eurasia about fifteen million years ago, and two million years have passed since their disappearance. The weight of the largest representatives of this tribe reached half a ton, and in size they were quite commensurate with modern horses. Archaeologists are convinced that the machairod was the largest wild cat of its time. Hunting large herbivores - rhinos and elephants, these animals quite successfully competed with other large predators of their time, dire wolves and cave bears. The Machairods became the "progenitors" of more perfect look saber-toothed cats - Homotherium.

Homotheria

It is believed that these saber-toothed cats appeared about five million years ago at the turn of the Miocene and Pleistocene. They were distinguished by a more slender physique, vaguely resembling a modern lion. However, their hind legs were somewhat shorter than their front ones, which gave these predators some resemblance to a hyena. The upper fangs of Homotheres were shorter and wider than those of Smilodon - representatives of another tribe of saber-toothed cats that inhabited the Earth in parallel with them. Along with this, the presence of a large number of notches on the fangs allowed scientists to conclude that these animals were capable of delivering not only chopping, but also cutting blows.

Compared with other saber-toothed cats, Homotherium had a very high endurance, was adapted to long (though not fast) running and crossing long distances. There are suggestions that these now extinct animals led a solitary lifestyle. However, most researchers are still inclined to believe that Homotheres hunted in groups like other saber-toothed cats, since it was easier to kill stronger and larger prey this way.

Smilodons

Compared to other saber-toothed cats known to the ancient animal world Earth, Smilodon possessed a more powerful physique. Most major representative saber-toothed cats - a smilodon populist that lived on the American continent - grew up to one hundred and twenty-five centimeters high at the withers, and its length from nose to tail could be two and a half meters. The fangs of this beast (together with the roots) reached twenty-nine centimeters in length!

Smilodon lived and hunted in prides, which included one or two dominant males, several females and young. The coloration of these animals could well be spotted, like a leopard. It is also possible that the males had a short mane.

Information about smilodon is contained in many scientific reference books and fiction, he acts as a character in films ("Portal jurassic"," Prehistoric Park") and cartoons ("Ice Age"). Perhaps this is the most famous animal of all, which are commonly called saber-toothed tigers.

Clouded leopard - a modern descendant of the saber-toothed tiger

Today it is considered that indirect, but the closest relative of Smilodon is clouded leopard. It belongs to the subfamily Pantherinae (panther cats), within which it is allocated to the genus Neofelis.

Its body is quite massive and compact at the same time - these features were also inherent in saber-toothed cats of antiquity. Among the representatives of modern cats, this beast has the longest fangs (both upper and lower) relative to its own size. In addition, the jaws of this predator are able to open 85 degrees, which is much more than any other modern cat.

Not being a direct descendant of saber-toothed cats, the clouded leopard is a clear proof that the method of hunting with the use of deadly "fangs-sabers" may well be used by a predator in modern times.

If you ask even a child about who is the king of animals, then the answer will be unequivocal: "Of course, a lion." Yet there is another opinion. Many experts give the palm to the tiger, and they are sure that it will be he who will emerge victorious from the battle of these two titans. But in order to determine who is stronger, who is faster and who is more dangerous - a tiger or a lion, it is necessary to provide the main characteristics of these two animals.

a lion

Now lions are found only in Asia and Africa, although earlier their range of residence was much wider - from Europe to the Middle East. But over time, people pushed them back, and now in wildlife lions are found only in the south, east and west of Africa, as well as in India. African and Asian lions differ in their appearance and basic characteristics from each other: it affects different environment a habitat.

These representatives of the cat family live in small groups - prides, the number of which ranges from four to thirty or more individuals. Usually a pride includes two or three males, one of which dominates, and several females with offspring. Large dimensions do not prevent these animals from overcoming even a three-meter height. In general, jumping is their forte. When hunting, the lion freezes in the grass in anticipation of the victim, and then knocks it to the ground in one calculated leap. Although, by the way, the main earner is the female, and the male is more responsible for protecting the territory of the pride from unwanted intrusions. It is quite easy to distinguish a lion from a lioness: the male has a lush mane, and the lioness does not.

Tiger

There are different subspecies: Amur, Bengal, Indochinese, Malay, Sumatran, Chinese. All names correspond to the habitat.

Tigers are solitary hunters. They do not live in groups, but apart. The male occupies an area of ​​700-800 square kilometers, and 500 square kilometers is enough for a female with offspring.

Who is bigger - a tiger or a lion?

The weight of an adult lion reaches from 180 to 240 kg, and the body length reaches three meters. The females are slightly smaller. average weight is 140 kg, and the body length is half a meter shorter.

The length of the body of an average adult tiger is not inferior to the length of the body of a lion, on the contrary, it is slightly longer. As for body weight, there is also a difference of 50 kg in favor of the tiger. Representatives of the Amur subspecies are even heavier: their weight reaches 350 kg.

So, who is bigger - a lion or a tiger? It turns out that the striped representative of the cat family beats the maned relative a little in size.

Comparison of the strength of two predators

And who is stronger - a lion or a tiger? The answer is far from clear. It depends on what is considered indicators of strength: either the characteristics of the species, or the number of rounds won. The claws of a tiger are sharper and longer (10 cm) than those of a lion (7 cm). Since the tiger is on average heavier than the lion, it means that he has more muscles. The strength of their jaws is approximately the same, and they kill the victim in a similar way: they bite their fangs into the neck. But the success of the duel depends not only on who is bigger - a tiger or a lion, but also on the tactics of the battle. For example, the blow of a lion is more crushing. With one swing, he kills a hyena or a zebra. If you take external characteristics the tiger is stronger than the lion. But if we take the specific results of the clashes between these two animals as a basis, then the king of beasts does not give up its positions and proves that it deserved such a title.

Who is faster - a lion or a tiger?

Here the advantage is on the side of the tabby cat. An adult tiger can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h, while a lion is only 60 km/h. True, both those and others are unable to run at such a speed for long distances.

Who is more dangerous?

According to its behavior in a fight, the tiger seems to be more aggressive than the lion. He immediately rushes into battle, while the lion can enter the battle as if reluctantly. Sometimes it seems that he plays first rather than tries to strike. It's all about their social nature. The tiger is used to fighting alone, he knows that he has no one to wait for help from. And the lion, who mostly hunts with members of the pride, may habitually think that he has a support group behind him, ready to turn on at any moment, and therefore behaves less intimidating than the enemy.

Who is more resilient?

Definitely a lion. It seems that he does not care even about deep wounds and pain. He will fight to the end. The tiger, after several injuries inflicted on him, as a rule, runs away. In a fight, the tiger makes more active, but unnecessary movements, and because of this, his strength is quickly depleted.

Who wins the conflict?

The answer to the question "who is stronger - a lion or a tiger" requires facts and documentary evidence, and not just unfounded reasoning. There are many real videos, which depicts the fight between two titans. In a nutshell, the conclusion is this: the tiger is the initiator of the conflict, but he retreats after the lion shows who is the master of the situation. The latter is more confident. Yes, and the lion has more fighting experience, because adult lions constantly fight for territory, and a tiger can only take part in a fight a couple of times in a lifetime.

The duel itself at first looks as if the tiger still inflicts more blows on the enemy, and this creates the illusion of his victory. But mostly these blows do not reach their goal, because the lion manages to dodge in time. The tiger, on the other hand, makes a lot of unnecessary movements, and this gets tired faster. In battle, he stands on two hind legs and tries to fight with his front legs, and at the same time it is harder to maintain balance. In addition, his strategy is not well thought out: he tries to hit on the neck, but the lion has a powerful mane that absorbs these blows, and they are in total don't bring the lion great harm. The blows of the lion are more calculated, and if he beats, then so that the tiger will fall for sure. This predator strikes with one paw, standing on three others, and tries to get into the unprotected neck or tear a tuft of skin from the sides or back, and it succeeds quite often. If the blow is strong, but not fatal, then the tiger shamefully runs away, whining like a dog.

In fairness, it should be noted that there is also another side of the coin. Perhaps the tiger runs away not so much because he is tired or scared, but because the lion is more afraid of wounds and does not see the need to fight to the death in a domestic showdown. After all, if a wounded lion needs to lie down, then other members of the pride will take care of him, and the tiger can only rely on himself, and severe severe injuries doom him to starvation. So he can choose to retreat.

Fights in Ancient Rome

It is interesting that the expression "king of beasts" was attached to the lion at the time ancient rome. About the attitude towards him as the owner great strength testifies to the many monuments of architecture, where this majestic predator is depicted as a winner. The question of who is stronger - a lion or a tiger, was also of interest to the ancient Romans. For the sake of the spectators, who were thirsty for bloody spectacles, different animals were pitted. Very often it was lions and tigers who had to measure their strength.

Who usually wins these fights? Almost all historical reports speak in favor of lions. For example, the predominant victories of these predators over tigers are recorded in Plato's Dialogues and Cleopatra's Memoirs. Moreover, there is evidence that the lion tore even an elephant due to its grip and technicality.

Another additional answer to the question of who is stronger - a lion or a tiger, are the architectural monuments of Ancient Rome. It is the lion that is depicted on the sculptures as a symbol of courage and strength. Therefore, eyewitnesses of animal battles also considered him so. There are very few monuments where the tiger is immortalized.

Skirmishes in zoos and circuses

In wildlife, individual fights would never have taken place, because the habitats of some subspecies do not intersect. For example, Amur tiger or a lion living in Africa would never have the opportunity to measure strength. Whether it's zoos, where they live in neighboring cells.

You can't argue with numbers. In most fatal cases, tigers fell victim. When they are together with lions in a confined space, such as an aviary or a cage, the tigers are very panicked, because they have nowhere to escape. They behave rather irrationally, and this is the main reason for their defeats. The lion, on the contrary, bends his line to the end, and the final outcome is the death of the enemy.

One animal trainer described the case of a lion named Sultan the First. During one performance at the circus, he challenged all the tigers. They approached him in the arena, and he defeated them all in turn. And it was only big young and strong beasts. Sultan the First, like an experienced boxer, delivered false blows, bluffed, forcing the tigers to miss, and then delivered a crushing blow. The defeated tigers crawled around the arena, and the winner triumphantly finished them off. No one could pull them apart, all the tigers died. It was a cruel sight.

Having considered these facts, each reader can decide for himself who is better - a lion or a tiger - will prove himself in a fight. Although it would be much better if they never fought among themselves and did not attack a person.

On our planet in different time a large number of fauna lived. However, the populations of many animals began to decline. The main factors of extinction have always been considered those associated with climate. But with the development of man, many animals disappeared forever. In this article we will talk about the disappeared wild cats.

Tasmanian tiger (marsupial tiger, Tasmanian wolf, thylacine)

One of the most mysterious animals that has been exterminated is the Tasmanian tiger.

It got its name in honor of the habitat - Tasmania. Despite the fact that to a large extent its name suggests the relationship of a mammal to the cat family, in fact it is a big misconception. Many researchers even classify the mammal as a subspecies of wild dogs.

Length adult could reach 1.4 meters excluding the tail. The length of the tail could exceed 60 cm. The weight of the animal is 6.35-7.7 kg.

European settlers who arrived on the Australian mainland began a rapid hunt for individuals of this species, arguing that the Tasmanian tigers steal livestock. By the 1920s, the animal population had been reduced so much that scientists had to list the species in the Red Book. Man finally exterminated the Tasmanian tiger in 1936.

Caspian tiger (Persian tiger, Turanian tiger)

A feature of such tigers is long stripes along the body, as well as their brown color. In winter, whiskers appeared in the Caspian tigers, the fur in the abdomen and the entire body became very fluffy and thick.

The mass of the average Caspian tiger was 240 kg.

The Romans used the Caspian tigers in gladiator fights.

The Caspian tiger lived in Central Asia, as well as the territory North Caucasus. The rookery of the Caspian tiger could be observed up close in tropical impassable places. But they were all pretty close to the water. In just one day, the Turanian tiger could travel more than 100 km, which indicates the endurance of an extinct animal.

The last mentions and studies related to this representative of the fauna date back to the 50s of the last century. On the territory of Turkmenistan on January 10, 1954, one of the last individuals was seen, which migrated from the northern part of Iran. According to some reports, the last Caspian tiger was shot in the southeastern part of Turkey in 1970.

Javan tiger

It got its name because of the place of its main residence - the island of Java, located in Indonesia.

Adult individuals weighed 75-141 kg, body length is about 2-2.5 meters.

It died out relatively recently - in the 1980s, due to habitat destruction, as well as poaching.

Bali tiger

The habitat is the island of Bali, which is why it was called Balinese.

It is believed that the Ballic and Javan tigers had the same ancestor.

The length of the tiger is 0.93-2.3 meters, excluding the tail, weight 65-100 kg.

Outwardly, this tiger among all subspecies was distinguished by the smallest number of black stripes. There may be dark spots between the stripes.

The tiger is often mentioned in folk stories and in fine arts peoples of Bali.

Bali tigers were destroyed by hunters. The last tiger was killed in 1937.

Pleistocene tiger

The most mysterious feline subspecies, known from fragmentary remains.

He lived in Russia, China and on the island of Java.

It is rather an early version of the modern tiger.

European cheetah (giant cheetah)

Lived on the territory of Eurasia about 500 thousand years ago.

Body length 1.3-1.5 meters excluding tail. Weight 60-90 kg. Height 90-120 cm.

Historians have discovered the remains of this cat in Europe, India and China.

Outwardly, he looked like a modern cheetah. The color of this animal remains a mystery. There are suggestions that the European cheetah had long hair.

The European cheetah most likely died out due to competition with other felids, which left no free niche for this large predator.

Miracinonyx

Possibly a distant relative of the cheetah. Probably the ancestor of the cougar.

He lived about 3 million years ago on the American continent.

Outwardly, it was similar to a modern cheetah, had a shortened skull, with enlarged nasal cavities and high teeth.

It was about the size of a modern cheetah.

Miracinonyx became extinct 20-10 thousand years ago due to climate change, lack of food and human hunting for it.

European jaguar (Gombastsog panther)

Lived approximately 1.5 million years ago, and is the earliest famous view genus Panthers in Europe.

European jaguars averaged around 120-160 kg. They were larger than modern jaguars.

The European jaguar was most likely a solitary animal. Lived in forests, but could also hunt in open spaces.

Pleistocene jaguar

It is believed to have descended from the giant jaguar. Appeared about 1.6 million years ago.

It was 1 meter high, 1.8-2 meters long, excluding tail, weight 150-190 kg.

Pleistocene jaguars lived in dense jungles, swampy floodplains, or coastal areas of the North and South America.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

giant jaguar

Lived in North America 1.6 million years ago.

There were two subspecies of giant jaguars - North American and South American.

The jaguar had long legs and a tail, and was about the size of a modern lion or tiger.

Scientists believe that jaguars lived on open plains, but due to rivalry with lions and other big cats, they were forced to find more wooded areas.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

Barbary lion (Atlas lion or Nubian lion)

The mass of an adult is 100-270 kg.

This animal was considered the largest lion subspecies. The Barbarian lion differed from its counterparts in a thick and dark mane, which went far beyond its shoulders and hung down in the lower abdomen.

In the past, it could be found in Africa, in the northern part of the Sahara desert. Europeans brought it to the Roman Empire, where it was used for recreational purposes, namely, fights with the Turanian tiger.

At the beginning of the 17th century, its population declined sharply, as a result of which it was visible only in northwestern Africa. Due to the popular use of firearms against animals, as well as the existence of a targeted policy against the Barbary lion, led to a decrease in numbers in this region. The last individual was killed in 1922 in the Atlas Mountains on the territory of their Moroccan part.

cave lion

2.1 meters long, up to 1.2 meters high.

progenitor cave lion considered the Mosbach lion.

Lived in northern Eurasia.

The cave lion, despite its name, did not live in the caves, but came there only during periods of illness or old age.

It is believed that cave lions were social animals and lived, like modern lions, in prides.

american lion

He lived about 11 thousand years ago.

The body length is about 2.5 meters, excluding the tail. The American lion weighed over 400 kg.

The American lion is descended from the cave lion, whose ancestor is the Mosbach lion. Outwardly, most likely, it looked like a hybrid of a modern lion and a tiger, but, perhaps, without a huge mane.

mosbach lion

Lived about 300 thousand years ago.

The body length of an adult individual reached 2.5 meters, excluding the tail, the lions were about 1.3 meters high. The Mosbach lion weighed up to 450 kg.

It turns out that it was the largest and heaviest subspecies of the lion of all that existed.

From the Mosbach lion came the cave lion.

Xenosmilus

It inhabited the territory of modern North America about 1.8 million years ago.

Xenosmilus weighed up to 350 kg, and the body size was about 2 meters.

Xenosmilus had a powerful physique and short but strong paws, had not very long upper fangs.

Homotherium

Lived in Eurasia, Africa and North America 3-3.5 million years ago.

The ancestor of Homotheria is Machairod.

Growth of Homotherium up to 1.1 meters, weight about 190 kg.

The forelimbs are somewhat longer than the hind ones, the tail is short - the homotherium was more like a hyena than a big cat. Homotherians had relatively short upper canine teeth, but were wider and serrated.

Homotheria had a difference from all cats - they saw better during the day, and not at night.

Extinct 10 thousand years ago.

Machairod

Lived in Eurasia, Africa and North America about 15 million years ago.

The name of the genus comes from the similarity of the teeth of its representatives with curved mahair swords. Machairods looked like giant tigers with 35 cm long saber fangs.

This saber-toothed tiger weighed up to 200 kg and was up to 3 meters long.

They became extinct about 2 million years ago.

Smilodon

He lived in America from 2.5 million to 10 thousand years BC. e.

Smilodon was the largest saber-toothed cat, reaching a height at the withers of 1.25 meters, a length of 2.5 meters including a 30-centimeter tail and weighing from 225 to 400 kg.

He had a stocky physique atypical for modern felines. The coloration of these animals could be uniform, but most likely it was spotted, like a leopard, and the presence of a short mane in males is also possible.

Smilodon fangs were up to 29 centimeters long (including the root), and, despite their fragility, were powerful weapons.

Scientists believe that smilodons were social animals. They lived in groups. Feeding the pride females.

The name "smilodon" means "dagger tooth".

One of the famous cartoon characters Diego from the cartoon "Ice Age" is just a smilodon.

Thilacosmil (Saber-toothed tiger)

Lived in South America about 5 million years ago.

It was 0.8-1.8 meters long.

It died out 2.5 million years ago, probably unable to compete with the first saber-toothed cats, in particular with Homotherium.

Outwardly, thilacosmil was a large, powerful stocky predator, with huge fangs. He was missing his upper incisors.

In general, tilacosmil was not a relative of saber-toothed tigers from the cat family, rather simply similar appearance living in the same conditions.

teetering on the brink of extinction due to destruction ecological systems and habitat loss. In the following paragraphs of the article, you will learn about 10 extinct species of tigers and lions that have disappeared from the face of the Earth over the past few thousand years.

Despite its name, the American cheetah had more in common with cougars than with modern cheetahs. Its slender, flexible body, like that of a cheetah, is most likely the result of convergent evolution (the tendency of heterogeneous organisms to take on similar forms body and behavior, when developed under similar conditions). In the case of Miracinonyx, the grassy plains of North America and Africa had almost identical conditions, which played a role in the emergence of outwardly similar animals. American cheetahs became extinct at the end of the last ice age, about 10,000 years ago, possibly due to human encroachment on their territory.

As with the American cheetah (see previous paragraph), the relationship of the American lion to modern lions is a matter of much debate. According to some reports, this predator of the Pleistocene era is more closely related to tigers and jaguars. The American lion coexisted and competed with other superpredators of the time, such as the saber-toothed tiger, the giant short-faced bear, and the dire wolf.

If the American lion was actually a subspecies of the lion, then it was the largest of its kind. Some alpha males reached a mass of up to 500 kg.

As you might guess from the name of the animal, the Bali tiger was native to the Indonesian island of Bali, where the last individuals died out only about 50 years ago. For thousands of years, the Bali tiger has been at odds with the indigenous human settlements in Indonesia. However, the neighborhood with local tribes did not pose a serious threat to these tigers until the arrival of the first European traders and mercenaries who ruthlessly hunted Bali tigers for the sake of sports interest and sometimes to protect their animals and homesteads.

One of the most formidable subspecies of the lion was the Barbary lion, a valuable property of medieval British lords who wanted to intimidate their peasants. Several large individuals made their way from North Africa to the Tower of London Zoo, where many British aristocrats were previously imprisoned and executed. The male Barbary lions had particularly thick manes, and reached a mass of about 500 kg, which made them one of the largest lions ever to live on Earth.

There is a high likelihood of a resurgence of the Barbary lion subspecies in wild nature by selecting his descendants, scattered throughout the zoos of the world.

The Caspian lion has a precarious position in the classification of big cats. Some naturalists argue that these lions should not be classified as a separate subspecies, considering the Kaispi lion to be simply a geographical offshoot of the still extant Transvaal lion. In fact, it is very difficult to distinguish an individual subspecies from an isolated population. In any case, the last specimens of these representatives of big cats became extinct at the end of the 19th century.

6. Turan tiger, or Transcaucasian tiger, or Caspian tiger

Of all the big cats that have become extinct in the past 100 years, the Turanian tiger had the largest geographic distribution, from Iran to the vast, windswept steppes of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The greatest damage to this subspecies was caused by Russian empire, which bordered on the habitats of the Caspian tiger. Tsarist officials encouraged the destruction of the Turanian tigers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

As with the Barbary lion, the Caspian tiger can be reintroduced into the wild through selective breeding of its offspring.

Probably, the cave lion, along with the saber-toothed tiger, is one of the most famous extinct big cats. Oddly enough, cave lions did not live in caves. They got their name because many fossils of these lions have been found in the caves of Europe, visited by sick or dying individuals.

An interesting fact is that paleontologists attribute as many as three subspecies to the European lion: Panthera leo europaea, Panthera leo tartarica And Panthera leo fossilis. They are combined relatively big sizes bodies (some males weighed about 200 kg, females were slightly smaller) and susceptibility to encroachment and seizure of territories by representatives of early European civilization: for example, European lions often participated in gladiator fights in the arenas of ancient Rome.

Javan tiger, like his close relative the Bali tiger (see point 3) was limited to one island in the Malay Archipelago. Despite relentless hunting, the main reason for the extinction of the Javan tiger was the loss of habitat due to the rapid growth of the human population in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The last Javan tiger was seen in the wild decades ago. Given the overpopulation of the island of Java, no one has high hopes for the restoration of this subspecies.

10. Smilodon (saber-toothed tiger)

WITH scientific point sight of smilodon, it has nothing to do with modern tigers. However, given its overall popularity, the saber-toothed tiger deserves a mention in this list of extinct big cats. The saber-toothed tiger was one of the most dangerous predators Pleistocene era, capable of sinking its huge fangs into the neck of large mammals of those times.

For a long time, until the moment when a person became a hunter and acquired a weapon, representatives of the cat family were at the top of the food chain of our planet. Of course, these were not modern lions, jaguars, leopards and tigers, but their extinct ancestors, such as the saber-toothed tiger or the American lion. Let's get acquainted virtually with the prehistoric extinct American lion, or, as scientists call it, Panthera leo atrox.

Biological description

All lions, as well as jaguars, tigers and leopards are representatives (Felidae), belong to the subfamily Pantherinae - big cats, and the genus Panthera (panther). According to the evolution of this species, it took place about 900,000 years ago in what is today modern Africa. Subsequently, representatives of this species inhabited most of the territory of the Holarctic. The earliest remains of predators in Europe were found near the Italian city of Isernia, and their age was determined at 700,000 years. About 300,000 years ago, a cave lion lived on the Eurasian continent. Thanks to the isthmus, which at that time connected America with Eurasia, part of the population of these cave predators came through Alaska and Chukotka to North America, where, due to prolonged isolation, a new subspecies of lions, the American ones, was formed.

family ties

As a result of a long joint work, conducted by researchers from Russia, England, Australia and Germany, it was found that in total we had three types of lions on the planet. Today, a modern lion lives in a rather small area. But before him there were two prehistoric and now extinct species. First of all, it is (Panthera leo spelaea), which lived in the west of Canada and in the territory of almost all of Eurasia in the Pleistocene. In addition, there was also the American lion (Panthera leo atrox), who lived in the territory of the modern United States. And also in some parts of South America. It is also called the North American lion, or the giant jaguar Negele. As a result of studies of the genetic material of fossil animals and modern predators, it was possible to establish that all three species of lions are very close in their genome. But here's what else the scientists managed to find out: the American lion subspecies was in genetic isolation for more than 340,000 years, and during this time it became very different from the rest of the subspecies.

Where did they come from?

Initially, the lions that came from Africa populated the territory of Eurasia and only then crossed the isthmus of Beringia, which in those distant times connected North America with the Eurasian continent, and began to explore the new continent. Scientists suggest that the emergence of two different species in North America is associated with the isolation of representatives of these two populations as a result of glaciation. According to another hypothesis, different species: the cave lion and the American lion are representatives of two waves of migration from Eurasia, quite far removed from each other in time.

What did he look like?

Like other American lions, it disappeared about 10,000 years ago. At one time, it was one of the largest and most dangerous animals: its length could reach three meters or even more, and its weight reached 300 for females, and up to 400 kg for males. Among scientists there is still no agreement on whether this animal had a mane, like its modern descendant, or not. However, they describe its appearance quite definitely: on powerful legs there was a dense, muscular body, crowned with a large head, and behind was a long tail. The color of the skin, as the researchers suggest, was monophonic, but, possibly, changed seasonally. The most morphologically close to the American lion are ligers - the offspring of a tigress and a lion. It is difficult to imagine what the American lion looked like from the description. Photo of reconstruction of it appearance help to understand how similar it is to its modern "relative".

Where did you live?

As a result archaeological sites the remains of this animal were discovered over a fairly large area: from Peru to Alaska. This allowed scientists to assert that the American lion lived not only in North, but also in certain regions of South America. Many remains of this animal were found near Los Angeles. Even today, despite the significant advances in science, scientists cannot name the exact and specific reasons that caused the disappearance of this predator about 10,000 years ago. There are hypotheses about the depletion of food lands and the death of animals that served as food for American lions due to glaciation and change climatic conditions. There is also a version of involvement in the extermination of this formidable predator.

Food and competitors

The American lion at one time could prey on the ancestors of modern wapiti and bison, as well as extinct bush bulls, western camels, and horses (Equus). At the same time, other large predators, also extinct.

To protect their prey and hunting grounds, lions could unite in groups. The American lion fought to defend its food and territory against the saber-toothed tiger (Machairodontinae), dire ancient wolves (Canis dirus) and short-faced bears(Arctodus simus).