THE PLIOCENE PERIOD. 



343 



all known beasts of prey. Not only are the jaws shorter in 

 proportion even than those of the great Cats of the present 

 day, but the canine teeth (fig. 253) are of enormous size, 

 greatly flattened so as to assume the form of a poignard, and 



e. 253. A, Skull of Machairodua cultrident, without the lower jaw, reduced In 

 size ; B, Canine tooth of the same, one-half the natural size. Pliocene, France. 



having their margins finely serrated. Apart from the charac- 

 ters of the skull, the remainder of the skeleton, so far as known, 

 exhibits proofs that the Sabre-toothed Tiger was extraordi- 

 narily muscular and powerful, and in the highest degree adapt- 

 ed for a life of rapine. Species of Machairodus must have 

 been as large as the existing Lion; and the genus is not only 

 European, but is represented both in South America and in 

 India, so that the geographical range of these predaceous 

 beasts must have been very extensive. 



Lastly, we may note that Pliocene deposits of Europe 

 have yielded the remains of Monkeys (Quadrumana), allied to 

 the existing Semnopitheci and Macaques. 



