Arctodus Pronunciation

Fun Facts

• ✓Arctodus simus could sprint at an estimated 40 mph over short distances, faster than a modern grizzly bear, making it nearly impossible for most Ice Age prey to outrun.
• ✓The giant short-faced bear's limbs were so long relative to its body that scientists debated for decades whether it was a dedicated predator or a mega-scavenger that muscled other predators off their kills.
• ✓Fossils of Arctodus simus have been found inside the famous La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California, where at least 30 individuals were trapped over thousands of years.
• ✓The lesser species, Arctodus pristinus, was largely confined to the eastern United States during the Early Pleistocene, while its larger descendant A. simus eventually ranged all the way from Alaska to central Mexico.
• ✓Despite being called a short-faced bear, Arctodus still had a longer face than any modern bear species — the name refers to how short its snout was compared to its unusually large skull.