Biological Sciences

Aug 21, 2023

Did Sabertooth Tigers Purr or Roar?

The sound a sabertooth made could depend on the shape of a few small bones.

Aug 1, 2023

Why You Shouldn’t Declaw Tigers or Other Big Cats

Declawing big cats is worse for them in terms of muscular effects than for smaller species.

Aug 23, 2023

Mighty Sabertooth Tigers May Have Purred Like Kittens

Popular Science
If the mighty Ice Age sabertooth tiger called out in a forest, and no one was around to hear it, did it even make a sound? A team of researchers from North Carolina State University set out to answer that philosophical question by investigating if sabertooth cats had a throaty purr or a mighty roar. They found that tiny bones in the tiger’s throat might present a more nuanced answer.

Aug 22, 2023

Did Sabertooth Tigers Purr or Roar? The Answer May Lie in a Tiny String of Bones

Phys.org
A new study from North Carolina State University researchers has examined the data behind the arguments for each vocalization and found that the answer was more nuanced than they thought—and that it could depend on the shape of a few small bones.

Aug 22, 2023

Did Sabertooth Tigers Roar or Purr?

Futurity
“Evolutionarily speaking, sabertooths split off the cat family tree before these other modern groups did,” says corresponding author Adam Hartstone-Rose, professor of biological sciences at North Carolina State University. “This means that lions are more closely related to housecats than either are to sabertooths. That’s important because the debate over the kind of vocalization a sabertooth tiger would have made relies upon analyzing the anatomy of a handful of tiny bones located in the throat."

Aug 22, 2023

Can Fossil Skulls Tell Us if Sabertooth Cats Purred or Roared?

Cosmos
One might imagine that such an imposing creature must have roared. But an analysis of Smilodon skull fossils by North Carolina State University researchers has shown that it may be more nuanced. “Evolutionarily speaking, sabertooths split off the cat family tree before these other modern groups did,” says corresponding author Professor Adam Hartstone-Rose. “This means that lions are more closely related to housecats than either are to sabertooths.”

Aug 29, 2023

Sabertooth Cats Might Have Purred, Roared, Or Made A Noise All of Their Own

IFL Science
“While humans have only one hyoid bone, purring cats have nine bones linked together in a chain and roaring cats have seven,” says Ashley Deutsch, a PhD student at North Carolina State University and lead author of the research, in a statement. “The missing bones are located toward the top of the hyoid structure near where it connects to the skull.”

Aug 23, 2023

Sabertooth Secrets: Did These Ancient Beasts Purr or Roar?

SciTechDaily
When a sabertooth tiger called out, what sound did it produce – a powerful roar or a deep purr? Recent research from North Carolina State University delved into the evidence supporting each theory, discovering that the answer might be more complex than initially believed – and that it could depend on the shape of a few small bones.

Jul 6, 2023

NC State Researchers: Dinosaur Discovery Key to Understanding Past and Future

WUNC
Researchers at North Carolina State University have discovered a new dinosaur species in Utah. Named Iani smithi, the plant-eating dinosaur was a relative of duck-billed dinosaurs and lived during a period of rapid climate change.

Jul 5, 2023

Pets Near PFAS Manufacturing Plant Show Disturbing Levels of Toxic Chemicals, Rising Health Concerns

BNN
Scott Belcher, a co-author of the study and a researcher at North Carolina State University, emphasized that these results provide concrete evidence of the detrimental impact of PFAS exposure on both animals and humans.