Arctodus Simus Size report

The short-faced bear (scientific name: Arctodus) was a terrifying predator that lived on the American continent 2 million years ago. Its scientific name, Arctodus, comes from Greek, meaning "bear's tooth." Because their main preys are American bison and bighorn bison, they are sometimes called "bulldog bears."

Short-faced bears had existed in both North and South America. At that time, the North American short-faced bear mainly included two species: Arctodus Simus and Arctodus Pistinus. According to reports, the South American giant short-faced bear is the largest bear that paleontologists have found so far on Earth.

In the mid-19th century, during the United States' westward movement, people found many fossils in the new land, including the fossils of giant bears. In 1854, American paleontologist Joseph Reddy established the genus Arctodus based on these fossils. Let's learn more about the giant Arctodus Simus in this post.

Description About Arctodus Simus Size

The Arctodus is a genus of large bear that originated during the Pleistocene epoch in what is now North America. During the great migration of creatures between North and South America, the Arctodus invaded South America and evolved the existing spectacled bear. Here we will focus on the introduction of the Arctodus Simus. Although we known little about the early history of the Arctodus Simus, it later became widespread in North America 800,000 years ago.

Arctodus Simus first appeared in North America during the Middle Pleistocene, 800,000 years ago, and its distribution ranged roughly from Alaska to Mississippi. The Arctodus Simus went extinct about 11,600 years ago, and its fossils were first found at Potter Creek Cave in Shasta County, California. It is the largest known terrestrial carnivore in North America. The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago is preserved the most complete full-body skeleton of Arctodus Simus ever found.

Arctodus Simus Size

Standing over 4 meters tall, although the Arctodus Simus was much taller than the Ursus arctos at the same time, its weight was not as heavy as people thought. Paleontologists estimate that the Arctodus Simus weighed about 800-1,000 kilograms when full-growth. However, the Arctodus Simus is not the largest of the bear family; the Arctodus in South America reaches almost 1,800 kilograms.

Physical Characteristics of Arctodus

The most notable physical feature of Arctodus is that it has long limbs. When standing on all fours, its back is about 1.8 meters high above the ground, and when it stands up with hind limbs, it is more than 4 meters (the largest Arctodus fossil found in North America is up to 4.8 meters tall). Arctodus evolved the ability to walk upright, which allows them to move easily and run quickly (over 40 miles per hour). The large mouth full of sharp teeth is a hunting weapon, the huge molars can crush the animal's bones, and the slender limbs allow it to walk fast for a long time.

Final Words

Arctodus is nicknamed for its relatively short face; Arctodus Simus is considered to be one of the largest known terrestrial mammalian carnivores that have ever existed. The Arctodus Simus was undoubtedly the strongest in the bear family. It is agile and strong, and its prey covers all mammals on the North American continent at that time. It had the capability of catching and killing bison, deer, elk, muskoxen, and other large animals. However, it was probably more of a scavenger due to its giant body size.