A Saber-Tooth Cat from South-Central Kansas

Abstract

This new discovery, a fragment of the right jaw containing the fourth premolar and first molar (No. 9977, Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas), was collected by Clyde T. Williams of Wichita, Kansas, in the W. 1/2 sec. 10, T. 34 S., R. 14 W., Barber County, Kansas. A definitive study of the Pleistocene geology in Barber County has not been completed, but observations to date indicate that the specimen came from gravel beds deposited in the last half of the Pleistocene-probably during early Wisconsinan time. An earlier age for the specimen seems unlikely, but an age as early as Illinoian should not be ruled out yet. No. 9977 lacks the anterior and posterior ends of the jaw. The fracture at the anterior end is diagonal, extending from a point 13 mm. anterior to the premolar downward and forward to a point 40 mm. anterior to the tooth row. Thus, enough of the upper border of the jaw is present to show that the third premolar was not present, and enough of the lower part of the jaw is present to indicate that the mental foramen was 20 to 25 mm. anterior to the tooth row. Nothing can be determined concerning the depth of the jaw below the diastema. The rounded appearance (transversely) of the border below the diastema suggests that the flange and symphysis were not particularly well-developed. The deep concave curvature (anteroposteriorly) of the lower border suggests that the diastema might have been relatively shorter than the diastema of specimens from Rancho La Brea. Matthew (1918) noted this same feature in a specimen, Smilodon nebrascensis from Hay Springs Quarry, Sheridan County, Nebraska. Both teeth on No. 9977 have the tips of the crowns fractured and lost, and little can be ascertained concerning the cutting edges of the teeth or the cusps. Posteriorly, a vertical break behind the molar left approximately two centimeters of the masseteric fossa. The dimensions of the specimen are: