The giant short-faced bear [1] ( lat. Arctodus simus ) is an extinct bear species that lived in North America at the end of the Pleistocene , between 44,000 and 12,500 years ago. It is the largest member of the bear family.
† Giant Short Bear | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Giant Short Bear (reconstruction) | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Latin name | ||||||||||||||||||||
Arctodus simus cope , 1897 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Short-Bear Bear Range |
Content
Description
The giant short-faced bear was one of the largest carnivorous mammals that lived on Earth in the era of glaciation . In size, some earlier carnivorous giant mammals compete with it, such as the endrusarch , sarcastodon and megistotherium .
Based on the findings of skeletons, the height at the withers was from 1.5 to 2 m, but sometimes it could reach 3 meters, and when the short-faced bear stood up straight, it reached 3.5-4.5 m. According to scientists, males weighed an average of 600 kg. and the largest of them could reach a weight of more than 1400 kg, which is noticeably more than the heaviest Kodiak or polar bears . As with most modern bears, the short-faced bear had a pronounced sexual dimorphism in terms of size and strength (males are larger than females).
In addition to the particularly short muzzle, which he owes his name to, this species in its anatomy had many features that distinguished it from other members of the family. Of all the known bears, the short-faced bear had the jaws most adapted to the carnivorous lifestyle. His fangs were very massive and directed in different directions, like a tiger , which, combined with a very strong jaw muscles, made it possible to make powerful killing bites. Lateral teeth were effective in cutting meat , tendons , skin and bones . In general, the proportions of the skull had more in common with large feline than with brown or black bears . The rather long limbs for a bear suggest that this bear was faster and more resilient than modern bears. The lower back line and powerful shoulders resemble the hyena 's physique, and the way of moving and feeding the short-faced bear, which was a predator and a devourer, fell quite similar to those of hyenas, although, unlike them, the species in question lived and hunted, probably alone.
Behavior
Thanks to its hypersensitive sense of smell short-faced bear was able to locate the corpses of large mammals , such as the woolly mammoth, from afar. With powerful jaws, he tore meat and grind bones, preferring to devour protein- rich bone marrow . However, such cases were rather rare, and the carcasses of large animals with long life expectancy and low fecundity did not constitute the main food of the short-faced bear. Therefore, it was necessary to hunt mainly for large live prey, which included horses , bison , camels and various species of deer . The short-faced bear, apparently, was a dangerous enemy of the first people on the American continent, the so-called culture of Clovis and its predecessors.
Extinction
The short-faced bear died out at the end of glaciation (about 12,500 BC), most likely after the large mammals that were the basis of its diet began to disappear.
The extinction of the giant short-faced bear benefited smaller and weaker brown bears , which had previously been hindered by competition with him and which, perhaps, were themselves the object of his attacks.
Kinship
The closest of the modern relatives of the giant short-faced bear is the spectacled bear , which lives in South America [2] . A related species, Tremarctos floridanus , inhabited in Florida , which, apparently, like the European cave bear, fed mainly on plant foods. He was smaller than a giant short-faced bear, but larger than a spectacled bear. These three species today belong to the subfamily of short-faced bears ( Tremarctinae ). Another species of the same genus was the small short- faced bear Arctodus pristinus .
Possible recreation
According to the publications of biologists, the short-faced bear belongs to the list of those extinct species that can be recreated by genetic engineering in the medium term [3] . Its genome is quite well preserved and with the further development of computer technology can be restored completely. The problem is finding a surrogate mother, since the closest relatives - spectacled bears weigh about ten times less.
See also
- Arctotherium
Notes
- ↑ Josh Donlan. Return to the Pleistocene (Rus.) // In the world of science : journal. - 2007. - October. - S. 41 .
- ↑ America's giant bears found a modern relative
- ↑ Scientists have determined which of the extinct animals is easiest to resurrect , Newsru.com, 1/15/2009
Literature
- Kenneth Tankersly: In Search of the Ice Age Americans . Gibbs Smith, 2002
- Adam White: Wildes Amerika. Zeugen der Eiszeit . Egmont vgs, ISBN 3-8025-1558-7
- Knight, Stirling, Kirshner: Bären . Orbis-Verlag, ISBN 3-572-01332-1