Hey there! Today, we’re going on an exciting journey with Squeaks, who’s been learning about animals that lived a long time ago. These creatures include the giant woolly mammoth and the saber-toothed Smilodon. Squeaks is curious about where these animals lived, and he’s using a map to find out!
A map is a fantastic tool that shows us pictures of the land and water on Earth. The green and brown parts represent land, while the blue parts show water. Squeaks and I are in North America, which is one of Earth’s seven continents. The continents are big pieces of land, and they include Australia, Africa, Antarctica, Europe, Asia, North America, and South America.
There’s a skinny piece of land that looks like a bridge connecting North America to South America. This land bridge is why we see cool animals like foxes and mountain lions around us. But how did this land bridge come to be?
About 65 million years ago, North and South America were not connected. Animals stayed on their respective continents unless they could fly or swim across the ocean. However, over millions of years, the continents moved slowly, and a land bridge formed between them. This allowed animals to move between the continents about 3 million years ago, in an event called the Great American Interchange.
During this interchange, animals like ancient foxes, horses, llamas, and big cats such as jaguars and pumas moved from North America to South America. Even giant bears, much bigger than today’s bears, crossed the bridge. These bears, called short-faced bears, were as tall as an African elephant when standing on two legs!
We know about these ancient animals because of fossils. Fossils are traces left by ancient creatures, like bones, teeth, or even footprints. They help us understand what these animals looked like and how they lived. For example, fossils show that short-faced bears had shorter snouts than most bears today. Interestingly, a relative of these bears, the spectacled bear, still lives in South America!
Some animals moved from South America to North America, too. Glyptodonts, which were like giant armadillos, and giant sloths made the journey. These sloths were as big as elephants and lived on the ground, unlike the smaller tree-dwelling sloths we see today.
Sadly, many of these amazing animals are now extinct. Scientists believe that changes in Earth’s temperature and weather, along with human hunting, made it difficult for them to survive. But thanks to fossils, we can still learn about these incredible creatures.
Isn’t it fascinating how the slow movement of continents brought new animals to different places? Let’s explore more about these ancient animals by checking out some museum exhibits online. Thanks for joining us on this adventure, and remember, you can always learn more with SciShow Kids!
