Giant 10-foot sloths, long-legged camels and 150-pound cheetahs – the fearsome ancient beasts that roamed prehistoric America

LONG before the United States existed, North America was populated by giant, exotic creatures that are now extinct.

Time travelers who visited the continent tens of thousands of years ago may have come face to face with gigantic animals, sloths and even a cheetah.

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Here are three of the creatures you may have encountered while wandering North America in prehistoric times.

GIANT SLOTH

Officially known as Megalonyx, this large giant sloth would have dwarfed any ancient human.

They reached up to 9.8 feet in length and could weigh up to 2,200 pounds.

Its range encompassed most of the United States as it stands today, and would have extended even to Alaska in warm climates. periods.

Megalonyx is famous for having been originally described by future President Thomas Jefferson in 1799.

He described remains found in West Virginia with the species Megalonyx jeffersonii named in his honor.

The giant ground sloth would have lived about 5 million years ago, before dying out about 13,000 years ago.

This was around the same time that woolly mammoths and saber-toothed cats became extinct.

CAMELOPES

Camelops is an extinct genus of large camels that lived in North and Central America.

In fact, it reached as far north as Alaska.

Camelops first appeared between three and four million years ago – and then disappeared around 13,000 years ago.

They stood up to 7 feet tall at the shoulders and – like Megalonyx – could weigh up to 2,200 pounds.

Despite today being associated with Asia and Africa, the Camelidae family of animals – including modern camels and llamas – originated in North America about 44 million years ago.

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AMERICAN CHEETAH

The American cheetah – or Miracinonyx, as scientists call it – is a now-extinct genus of cat.

They were endemic to North America between 2.5 million and 16,000 to 12,000 years ago.

And scientists think the 150-pound cats were very similar to modern cheetahs.

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The genus is generally considered to have two species: M. inexpectatus and M. trumani.

M. inexpectatus is believed to have appeared first, was more cougar-like, and may have lived alongside (and competed with) jaguars and saber-toothed cats.

Meanwhile, M. trumani was more cheetah-like, but with fully retractable claws (unlike the modern type).

It is believed to have hunted running prey such as pronghorn and horses, as well as sheep and goats.

Miracinonyx fossils have been found in Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Nebraska, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming.