![]() There is still considerable scientific debate on what caused the extinction of these ground sloths around 11,000 years ago. There was even a mummified fingernail on the sloth's finger! Another spectacular find from a cave in Tennessee contained an individual Shasta's ground sloth's bones that were still attached by ligaments and cartilage. One of their distant relatives, the Shasta's ground sloth ( Nothrotheriops shastensis), is famous for the incredibly thick layers of fossilized dung they left preserved in caves of the American southwest. Jefferson's ground sloths probably used caves for protection from the elements and hungry predators. Jefferson's ground sloth fossils are commonly found in the western United States, the Great Lakes region, and Florida. Jefferson's ground sloth, like its tree-dwelling relatives, was probably a slow, awkward mover on land, with its feet rotated over so it was walking on its ankles and baby toes. Their long, blunt, peg-like teeth were used to strip leaves from shrubs and tree branches. ![]() They may have used their long sharp claws in defense, but these claws were probably better suited to grasping for food in tall tree branches. Although the appearance of these giant ground sloths might seem menacing, they were herbivores. ![]() A fully grown Jefferson's ground sloth was about the size of an ox, at up to three metres long. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |