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Thylacosmilus was a large, cat-like sabre-toothed marsupial, that lived from the Miocene to the Pliocene epoch.

Characteristics

Thylacosmilus had long, sabre-like upper canines and short, blunt, peg-like lower jaw bone. They were described as having black muscled skin (resembling panthers) and had yellow eyes that reflected red. Thylacosmilus apparently also often hunted in packs, and seemed to be stalkers which would slowly close in from the cover of darkness upon prey. 

Incursions and encounters

Shadow of the Jaguar

A pack of six Thylacosmilus under the control of a Future Bird came through an Anomaly to a jungle in Peru in the present. They proceeded to go on rampage, wiping out several villages. They were also responsible for killing Jaime Bairstow and a sloth.

The Thylacosmilus were tracked and followed in the jungle by the Anomaly Research Centre team and the accompanying Special Forces soldiers. One Thylacosmilus was killed by Sean Lucas just after it fatally wounded Andy Blaine. At an Incan temple, the team disrupted the Bird's control over the Thylacosmilus and the bird brutally killed one, and the pack were knocked out and subsequently returned through the Anomaly shortly before it closed.

ThylacosmilusSkull

A skull reconstruction of Thylacosmilus, showing the lower jaw bone. (albeit only half)

Real life

Thylacosmilus lived in South America from the Late Miocene to Late Pliocene epochs. It is thought to have had a weak bite but strong muscles in the neck and limb regions, suggesting it relied upon immobilisation and precise bites to kill its prey rather than powerful, crushing bites. Thylacosmilus is also counted as a "sabre-toothed cat," although it was not an actual cat and only resembled them due to convergent evolution. Thylacosmilus fossils have been found in multiple provinces in northern Argentina. Evidence suggests it fed mainly on the soft organs of its prey, due to the lack of wear on its teeth, and it is sometimes theorized to have slurped the organs out of of its prey after killing it. Thylacosmilus also had limited binocular vision due to its unique saber teeth, which never stopped growing, with its eyes being similar in placement to those of herbivorous mammals like cattle. However, despite this, it is still believed to have been an effective predator, as it likely had excellent hearing and its vision was good enough to still aim accurately as an ambush predator.

Trivia

  • The image of the Thylacosmilus on the cover of Shadow of the Jaguar is actually that of the Smilodon from Episode 2.3, although it is edited to make it look darker. Incidentally, Shadow of the Jaguar takes place between Episode 2.3 and The Lost Island.
  • Thylacosmilus may possibly have he highest body count of any animal in the series, wiping out an entire village of 30+ people. it is rivaled only by the Kaprosuchus (killing 30-40 homeless) and the Future Predator (possibly killing the entire human race in one timeline).

Errors

  • Cutter identifies Thylacosmilus as a borhyaenid multiple times. More recently, it was found to be in its own group, thylacosmilidae.
  • Thylacosmilus is said to be bigger than they would have been in real life.
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