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A Giant Short-faced Bear [1]
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Date: 2025-01-02
Welcome to the Street Prophets Coffee Hour cleverly hidden at the intersection of religion, art, science, food, and politics. This is an open thread where we can share our thoughts and comments about the day. Let’s start out by looking at an extinct Giant Short-faced Bear (Arctodus simus) in the Ohio History Center in Columbus, Ohio.
During the Ice Age, the Giant Short-faced Bear was the largest and most powerful land carnivore in North America. It stood up to 11 feet tall on its hind legs. The giant short-faced bear is considered to be the largest terrestrial mammalian carnivore that ever existed. This animal became extinct about 10,000 years ago.
In his book Ice Age Mammals of North America, Ian Lange explains the designation “short-faced”:
“Their snouts appear short relative to the size of their heads—thus, the name ‘short-faced’ bear. The width of the giant’s skull was 80 percent of the skull’s length. With short faces and wide muzzles, the skulls of the two species resemble that of a big cat.”
According to the museum:
“The short nasal bones and deep snout give the illusion that this bear had a relatively short face compared to other bears.”
Shown above is a cast of the skull of a Short-faced Bear.
Shown above is a sculpture by David L. Might.
Open thread
This is an open thread—all topics are welcome.
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