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associated with the skeleton of La Brea
Woman (Reynolds, 1985).
underbelly of the prey after the kill
(Akersten, 1985). Other large cats include
the American lion, puma, bobcat, and
jaguar.
Sabre-toothed cat and other cats
The state fossil of California, Smilodon
fatalis , is the best known of all the La Brea
mammals and is the second most common
( 292, 293 ). About the same size as the
African lion, the exact function of the
large upper canine teeth is disputed.
Conventionally believed to have been used
to stab and kill their prey, recent studies
suggest that their fragility would have been
more suited to slicing open the soft
Elephants
The imperial mammoth, Mammuthus
imperator , was the largest of the La Brea
mammals, standing almost 4 m (13 ft) tall
and weighing almost 5,000 kg (5 tons)
( 294 , 295 ). The American mastodon,
Mammut americanum , was smaller, at 1.8 m
(6 ft) tall ( 296 ) and fed on leaves and twigs,
unlike the mammoth, which fed on grass.
292
292 Skeleton of the sabre-
tooth cat Smilodon fatalis
GCPM. Length of body
1.42 m 4.56.5 ft.
293
293 Reconstruction
of sabre-toothed cat.
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