King of the Land versus the Queen of the skies….
Another day, another death match between two of histories super predators.
Hello and welcome back to Life’s Biggest Questions, the channel that looks to answer
an array of weird and wonderful queries.
Sometimes we talk science, sometimes we talk history, politics, pop culture… but at the
moment we are all over talking about long dead ancient killers from the animal kingdom
fighting…why…cause…well… you guys seem to really be into it, what can I say?
Before we get right on into this video why don’t you guys let me know if you are team
bird or team tiger?
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Alright, Terror Bird!
I mean, it has the word terror in its name and, yeah, I’m scared!
Officially called the Phorusrhacids – the terror birds were the Top Predator in South
America for nearly 60 million years – before they died out 2.5 mil ago.
The biggest breed of terror bird was the Titanis – they were as fast as an ostrich and has
INSANELY powerful feet as well as some kind of cross between a pickaxe and a meat cleaver
for a beak.
These killing machines were 3 metres tall and weighed 150 kg.
These birds were killing machines that killed in a number of brutal ways – they would
stab prey in the back of the head from a height, they would also use their feet as weapons
to kick, stamp and hold down as they pecked prey to death.
In some instances, they would also pick up some prey with their beak and smash them on
the ground repeatedly.
So, how did these killing machines die out?
Well, When the land bridge was created in central America, terror birds one one of the
species that migrated in the Great American Interchange.
They started actually meeting the Sabre Tooth cats, which led to competition for prey…although
it is thought the final nail in the coffin was climate change.
Sabre tooth tigers aren’t actually related to tigers we know today, but they were insane
killer cats.
They primarily lived in North America, but also made it across to South America when
the land bridge formed.
The Sabre tooths lived from 2.5 million years ago and 10 thousand years ago, with their
reign on earth much shorter than the Terror Birds, although more recent.
These frightening predators did actually cross over with the terror birds, albeit briefly,
so perhaps they did meet and fight.
The Sabre tooths were smaller in terms of height than the tall terror birds, at around
1.2 metres in length, although they were weightier at around 400 kilograms.
We already know how terror birds fight, but what about the sabre tooths?
Well, these fast, agile killers would stalk and ambush their prey, biting them with their
huge 28-centimetre-long fangs as they held them down with their paws and bit them.
There is probably one question on everyone’s lips ahead of the fight….terror birds….can
they fly?
Sadly for their top trump card, they cant, which really evens up this fight.
We know both animals are fast… but the tiger has the edge in the weight division.
Who would have an early advantage would depend on who attacked first – the tiger could
launch at the bird and take it down with a hard, powerful bite to the leg, and it could
probably hold the lighter bird down with its paws.
As it delivered powerful sharp death blows through the birds flesh.
On the other hand, the terror bird could run at the tiger, smashing its skull with succinct
powerful blows to the back of the head, as it looms above, pecking.
It could not use its pick up and smash technique, as the Sabre tooth would simply be too heavy
for the bird, and usually killed much smaller animals when hunting.
Of course, it is worth mentioning here, the pair would not usually fight as they would
prey on smaller animals, easier to kill.
While these two apex predators seem quite evenly matched, I’d have to say I am leaning
towards the sabre tooth being the victor here in a one on one match….however…there is
one big advantage the Terror Bird has….while the sabre tooth was a solitary predator, the
terror bird was thought to hunt in packs, using low frequency communications to talk
with their other terror bird mates.
Like in life, having friends is a bit of a game changer!
In a group, the terror birds could easily destroy the sabre tooth… but is one against
three fair?
So guys that is what I think would happen if the Sabre Tooth and Terror Bird fought…what
did you think to this?
Did your team win?
Who would you like to play off against each other next?
Let me know in the comments section down below.
Also, while you are down there, don’t forget to leave a thumbs up!
Thanks for tuning in to this episode of LBQ – I am your host Rebecca Felgate, I’ll
catch you in the next video, but until then stay curious, stay alert and never ever stop
questioning.