By: Samantha Kupferman

The Hoplophoneus would have been the size of a leopard. They had shared an almost identical structure with the SMILODON.  Short legs  Mouth could open to a 90 degree angle  Elongated fangs on the lower jaw ( 3-4 inches long )  Retractable claws  Thought to have fur  The skull is only about 15 cm long.

Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Nimravidae Genus: Hoplophoneus.….here kitty kitty…...

 The Hoplophoneus is over fifty five million years old.  20 million years older then the Smilodon.  Lived during the Oligocene period  Life span was about 30 years.  Some fossils had been found in South Dakota.  Fossils have also been found in Wyoming.

Continued History A badly weathered skull of this sabertooth cat was discovered by Dr. Evans during a geological survey of the White River Badlands in Joseph Leidy first identified it as a new species of Machairodus, a sabertooth that had been found in Europe, Brazil and the Himalayas. In 1856 he named it Drepanodon primaevus. Its name was changed to Hoplophoneus primaevus in 1874 by E. D. Cope.

Habitat & Diet  They had lived on the outskirts on jungle like forests.  They had been able to climb trees.  The primitive horses such as Mesohippus, was probably its most common prey.  They used their teeth to wound the prey and watch it die ( their teeth were too delicate and could break easily)