Read on Twitter
BIG TEEF in mammals can have a number of functions!
"Sabre-toothed" deer: males fight for territory
Dinoceratans (e.g. Uintatherium): maybe defence, maybe fighting for mates, maybe digging for tasty tubers (or all!?)
True sabre-tooths: MURDER
https://twitter.com/Yara_Haridy/status/1245743447404957703
"Sabre-toothed" deer: males fight for territory Dinoceratans (e.g. Uintatherium): maybe defence, maybe fighting for mates, maybe digging for tasty tubers (or all!?) True sabre-tooths: MURDER https://twitter.com/Yara_Haridy/status/1245743447404957703
Those gigantic canines in true sabretooths are flattened and serrated, just like a steak knife 
We use steak knives because they're effective at cutting flesh, and so are the canines of a sabre-toothed mammal, like Smilodon here.
Photo is from Brink et al. 2015, SciRep
We use steak knives because they're effective at cutting flesh, and so are the canines of a sabre-toothed mammal, like Smilodon here.
Photo is from Brink et al. 2015, SciRep
Those flat, scary teeth are excellent at tearing flesh, but also fragile.
So how does a sabre-toothed mammal kill its prey without breaking them? Very carefully.
You see, struggling prey is *exactly* the type of thing that could break those teeth.
So how does a sabre-toothed mammal kill its prey without breaking them? Very carefully.
You see, struggling prey is *exactly* the type of thing that could break those teeth.
So step 1 of using those big teeth: immobilize your prey.
Luckily, sabre-toothed mammals generally had THICC forelimbs, suggesting they were very strong and could pin down their prey.
Figure from Meachen & Van Valkenburgh 2010, PLOS ONE
Luckily, sabre-toothed mammals generally had THICC forelimbs, suggesting they were very strong and could pin down their prey.
Figure from Meachen & Van Valkenburgh 2010, PLOS ONE
THEN, once the prey is pinned down, the canines can do their job!
The widely accepted use for the canines is called the canine-shear bite. If applied to the neck of a horse, this would sever the windpipe and many major blood vessels.
Fig. from Turner et al. 2011
The widely accepted use for the canines is called the canine-shear bite. If applied to the neck of a horse, this would sever the windpipe and many major blood vessels.
Fig. from Turner et al. 2011
