Why did the saber-toothed tiger become extinct?

The saber-toothed tiger, also known as the Smilodon, went extinct about 10,000 years ago, at the end of the Pleistocene epoch. There is no single definitive answer to why this species went extinct, but researchers have proposed several theories.

Model of a saber-toothed tiger. Image: MikeB based on one in the public domain.

One theory suggests that the extinction of the saber-toothed tiger was due to changes in climate and vegetation. The end of the Pleistocene epoch saw a shift towards a warmer, drier climate, which may have reduced the availability of the large prey species that the saber-toothed tiger relied on. As the saber-toothed tiger's prey populations declined, the species may have been unable to adapt and survive.

Another theory is that the saber-toothed tiger's extinction was due to competition with other predators, such as humans and other big cats like lions and tigers. Humans may have hunted the saber-toothed tiger, while other predators may have outcompeted them for prey resources.

Lastly, some researchers believe that disease or genetic factors may have played a role in the extinction of the saber-toothed tiger. However, further research is needed to understand the exact cause or combination of causes that led to the extinction of this iconic predator.

10 million years ago the largest cat alive was a 600 pound sabre-toothed cat species

Scientists have identified a giant new sabre-toothed cat species which they believe was present on the planet in North America between 5 and 9 million years ago. It had an estimated body mass of 604 lbs (274 kgs) but it could have been larger. The long bone of the arm (humorus) was 1.4 times longer than that of the modern day lion.

This is a sabre-toothed cat but not the one mentioned. Photo: Getty.

They decided that this super-sized cat species attacked rhinoceroses which were abundant in North America at that time. They would have also preyed upon camels and sloths both of which would have been much larger than today's species. As yet, the scientists do not know how this species of cat fits in with the others in terms of evolution and taxonomy.

They said that it was known there were giant sabre-toothed cats in Europe, Asia and Africa and now North America have their own. They used digital images and specialised software to find similarities from the relics of other cat species. They say that they discovered many specimens of this big cat in museums in western North America. Comment: perhaps they had not realised the significance of them until now. They used these other specimens as a basis for their analysis which helped them to identify this new felid.

Associated: Sabre-toothed cats were endurance hunters in complete contrast to today's stalkers and dashers.

Early Humans Defended Themselves against Sabre-toothed Tigers With Spears

About 300,000 years ago sabre-toothed tigers were roaming around North Central Germany near Hanover. We know this because the remains of a sabre-toothed tiger were preserved in rock strata 300,000 years ago. I think it is worth stating at the outset that the sabre-toothed tiger is not actually a tiger as we know today. It was a different species of wild cat. It is probably more sensible to describe the cat as a “sabre-toothed cat".

The estimates are that this large wild cat weighed nearly 440 pounds. It had razor-sharp claws and canine teeth that were more than 4 inches in length. Clearly, this was a formidable predator for early humans.

Humans would have defended themselves using a 6 foot to 7 and 1/2 foot long spear. The spears were used as hunting weapons. It has been speculated that the early humans of this era hunted hores and in the area in question they camped along a 300 foot stretch of a shallow lake.

Source: a report by the Lower Saxony Heritage Authority.