Anatomy of the Marsupial Lion
- By Rima Chaddha
- Posted 06.19.07
- NOVA
One of Australia's most fantastic beasts, the extinct Thylacoleo carnifex, or "meat-cutting marsupial lion," possessed a host of physical traits unseen in any single creature alive today. These included features especially suited to a carnivorous hunter, including retractable, catlike claws, a kangaroo's tail, and jaw muscles that delivered a bite stronger than a lion's. Altogether, says paleontologist Rod Wells, Thylacoleo resembled something designed by committee. In this interactive, learn more about the marsupial lion's singular anatomy and what it reveals of the animal's predatory life in Pleistocene Australia.
Launch Interactive
Printable Version
Explore what the skeleton of the bizarre Ice Age predator Thylacoleo reveals about how it lived.
Credits
Images
- (skeleton)
- Courtesy Roderick T. Wells
- (kangaroo)
- istockphoto.com/© Michelle Allen/WebStuff.biz Pty Ltd
- (lion)
- istockphoto.com/© Nico Smit, Nico Smit Photography
- (opossum hind paw)
- © Dennis Deck
- (cat claw)
- Courtesy wikipedia.com/AnasiZ
- (koala)
- © Paul Osmond/www.deepseaimages.com
- (Tasmanian devil)
- istockphoto.com/© Leo Stanners/Limelight Design
- (tiger)
- istockphoto.com/© Dirk Freder
Related Links
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Bone Diggers
Deep in an Australian cave, paleontologists discover fossils of extinct giant animals.
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Australia's Vanished Beasts
A 25-foot lizard. A carnivorous kangaroo. See these and other extinct animals.
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Evolution Down Under
How did Australia come to be marsupial heaven?
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Gigantism & Dwarfism on Islands
Why do many animal species become either larger or smaller on islands over time?
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