Description
Book SynopsisThe consummate guide to the ultimate sabertooth. Few animals spark the imagination as much as the sabertooth cat Smilodon. With their incredibly long canines, which hung like fangs past their jaws, these ferocious predators were first encountered by humans when our species entered the Americas. We can only imagine what ice age humans felt when they were confronted by a wild cat larger than a Siberian tiger. Because Smilodon skeletons are perennial favorites with museum visitors, researchers have devoted themselves to learning as much as possible about the lives of these massive cats. This volume, edited by celebrated academics, brings together a team of experts to provide a comprehensive and contemporary view of all that is known about Smilodon. The result is a detailed scientific work that will be invaluable to paleontologists, mammalogists, and serious amateur sabertooth devotees. The book covers all major aspects of the animal's natural history, evolution, phylogenetic relation
Trade ReviewAny college-level science collection strong in paleontology must have this in-depth and authoritative survey.
—
Donovan's Literary ServicesThis edited collection brings together the who-is-who of sabertooth palaeontology to provide a thorough and technical overview of the current state of the field . . . this book is a treasure trove collecting review articles and new research on
Smilodon.
—
Natural History Book ServiceDetailed descriptions of specimens are presented in several papers and make the book an essential reference for researchers working on specimen identification for extinct felids . . . This book does a very good job of summarizing our current understanding of the natural history of an extinct taxon while laying a foundation for additional research.
—Christopher N. Jass, Quaternary Palaeontology Program, Royal Alberta Museum,
Quarterly Review of BiologyIn
Smilodon: The Iconic Sabertooth, Werdelin, McDonald, Shaw, and colleagues provide a comprehensive volume that thoroughly documents both the science of Smilodon as well as the extraordinary details behind its story, successfully tracking down obscure historic collectors and specimens. This far-reaching book fills a gap in the literature.
—Alexis M. Mychajliw, La Brea Tar Pits & Museum,
Journal of MammalogyTable of ContentsPreface
1. Smilodon, by H. G. McDonald
2. The Phylogenetic Context of Smilodon, by Lars Werdelin and Therese Flink
3. Smilodon Fatalis from Talara, Peru, by K.L. Seymour, C.S. Churcher, and Ashley R. Reynolds
4. The Sabertooth Cat, Smilodon Populator (Carnivora: Felidae), from Cueva de Milodón, Chile, by H. G. McDonald and Lars Werdelin
5. Smilodon from South Carolina, by Larry D. Martin, Jim Knight, Todd Wheeler, and John P. Babiarz
6. Understanding Killing Behavior in Smilodon Fatalis, by Stephen Wroe and William C.H. Parr
7. Testing the Canine Shear-Bite Model for Smilodon using an Engineering Experiment, by Todd Wheeler
8. The Evolution of the Skull, Mandible and Teeth of Rancho La Brea Smilodon Fatalis as they Relate to Reeding Adaptations, by Julie A. Meachen and Wendy Binder
9. Analyzing the Tooth Development of Sabertoothed Carnivores, by Robert Feranec and M. Aleksander Wysocki
10. Dietary Ecology of Smilodon, by Larissa DeSantis
11. The Postcranial Morphology of Smilodon, by Margaret Lewis
12. Smilodon Paleopathology, by Sue Ware and Christopher A. Shaw
