Guest Smilodon Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 (edited) In previous posts I alluded to the third jewel in my Tucson Triple Crown this year. As a refresher, here are the first two. ( European cave lion and archaeocete molar The third jewel arrived a few days ago. It is not as aesthetic or complete as the other two but it doesn't get any better than this if you are into mammals. This is Panthera atrox, the American Lion, from the Santa Fe River in Florida. Neither pictures nor words can express what this beast was all about. Imagine an 8-10 foot long lion not including the tail. Atrox was probably 10-15% bigger than the European cave lion and 25% larger than lions living today. 10-20 times more rare than the sabercat Smilodon fatalis. It just goes on and on. My precious specimen and replica of complete mandible Edited March 23, 2010 by Smilodon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Oh my gosh Look at the colors in those teeth! I do get the rarity factor too, but I can't ignore how pretty it is <yesssss, my preciousssss....> "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megalania Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Truly amazing. whats going to make up your next triple crown? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Smilodon Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 Truly amazing. whats going to make up your next triple crown? Thanks. It will be a tough act to follow for sure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatorman Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 Umm, can i haz it pwease? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenixflood Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 Sounds like a formidable beast I now know what to look for in FL The soul of a Fossil Hunter is one that is seeking, always. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siteseer Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 Smilodon, That is a great trio. Congratulations. I was minutes late for a 3-tooth cave lion jaw in the early 90's back when fossil dealers were at the Travelodge (now the Days Inn, I think, next to the Carl's Jr.). It was a beauty though not as complete as yours. Yeah, getting a nice American lion tooth is tough enough but you managed to score a 3-tooth jaw section. I don't know how you got past all the Florida collectors and got that one. How do you distinguish Smilodon teeth (the sabercat, not yours) from lion teeth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Smilodon Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 How do you distinguish Smilodon teeth (the sabercat, not yours) from lion teeth? I can generally recognize them by sight, but here is a better description from a friend: "In general, teeth of "conical toothed cats" such as lion, jaguar etc. are a little more robust for their size, but the main difference is that the cusps are standing vertical, for lack of better terms, where in sabercats they are slanted backwards. This is easier to see in a jaw, but if you pull up some pics, you'll see what I mean. Of course this is only good for the lower teeth. The p4 is different, since (besides the slant) it typically has an extra cusp in Smilodon. S. fatalis has no p3, so if you have a large p3, it's not Smilodon. S. gracilis has it, but it's a lot smaller, of course, and reduced compared to Jaguar. The upper P3 is the most problematic to tell apart, but the P4 (carnassial) is easy, since it is morphologically totally different in sabercats... Last but not least, size. Most teeth can be separated by simple measurements, but of course you need data to compare it to.... As for your initial question, atrox vs. fatalis, they are vastly different. It would have to be a relatively small lion and a huge Smilodon to be even close in size....." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasonsannar Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 That molar is wicked awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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