A saber-toothed tiger (also called a saber-toothed cat) was a prehistoric predator with two enormous canine teeth that curved down from its upper jaw like daggers. Despite the common name, these animals weren't actually tigers: they belonged to a different family of cats that went extinct about 10,000 years ago.

The most famous species, Smilodon fatalis, lived in North and South America during the Ice Age. Those iconic fangs could grow up to seven inches long, about the length of a butter knife. Scientists think saber-toothed cats used these teeth to deliver powerful bites to large prey like bison, horses, and young mammoths. Their jaw muscles were incredibly strong, designed to drive those fangs deep into their prey.

Saber-toothed cats weren't built for long chases like modern cheetahs. Instead, they were ambush hunters with muscular bodies, somewhat like today's lions. They probably hid and waited for prey to come close, then attacked with explosive power.

These magnificent predators died out along with many other Ice Age animals, possibly due to climate change and the disappearance of the large animals they hunted. We know about them from fossils, including thousands found preserved in the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, where animals got trapped in sticky asphalt thousands of years ago.