Horses evolved in North America and traveled south during the interchange, later becoming extinct in the Americas before Spaniards reintroduced the horse we know today. Saber-toothed Cats also migrated south, where they thrived on new prey options.
Story
So horses are generally thought by the public to have been introduced to North America about 500 years ago by the Spaniards, but as paleontologists we know that horses actually evolved in North America over the past 50 million years. They migrated outside of North America into the Old World, they also migrated into South America after the formation of the Isthmus of Panama a couple of million years ago.
In addition, the Saber-toothed Cat skull that you see here represents an animal that, along with horses, also migrated into South America across the Isthmus of Panama during what’s called the Great American Biotic Interchange.
Bruce MacFadden
Curator, Vertebrate Paleontology
Distinguished Professor
Florida Museum of Natural History
Summary
Horse Skull (Equis insulatus)
From Tarija, Bolivia
Lived ~750 thousand years ago
Saber-toothed Cat Skull Fragment (Smilodon populator)
From Tarija, Bolivia
Lived ~750 thousand years ago
Exhibit Area
Theme
Great American Interchange