Most Threatening Prehistoric Predators Known To Man

Home AnimalsThese Threatening Prehistoric Predators Would Wreak Havoc Today

These Threatening Prehistoric Predators Would Wreak Havoc Today

By Joe Burgett - February 28, 2021

Megalania

Historic Period: Pleistocene

The Megalania was a prehistoric monitor lizard and said to be the first major creature to have settled in Australia. The youngest fossils we have on record date back to only 50,000 years ago. Due to the widespread native population that has been in Australia for thousands of years, it is possible early humans came across these massive creatures. In fact, they are the ancestor of the Komodo Dragon. Many feel that they are the creature that truly inspired the Dragon legend as well.

They could not fly but they reached around 23 feet in length and weighed a little over 1,300lbs. They had the same venom in their saliva that Komodo’s have today, and the current version can make your skin burn. A more powerful version could make it feel on fire. Therefore, some early humans could have used them to inspire the Dragon spitting fire myth, as it sort of did do this. They simply did not know what venom was at that time, and tales can miss little details after thousands of years.

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Saber-Toothed Tiger

Historic Period: Pleistocene

In spite of the names used for the creature (Saber-Toothed Tiger/Saber-Toothed Cat), it was not a tiger nor a cat at all. In fact, the Saber-Toothed Tigers were actually more closely related to modern-day marsupials like the Kangaroo. They come across as cats by how they appeared, yet they would have had pouches too. They were large predatory mammals that hunted in packs or alone and were apex during their era. The species did not go extinct completely until around 11,000 years ago.

We often connect them to Dinosaurs but it’s unlikely that they lived much alongside them, if at all. More than most, human beings almost certainly came across the species. They were slightly larger than most modern-day predatory big cats like Lions and Tigers, and they also had their infamous dual mandible teeth. Sabers were also bear-like in their build, making them tough to deal with. Clearly, they are among the most threatening prehistoric predators known.

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Tyrannosaurus Rex

Historic Period: Late Cretaceous

We all know that you looked at this list of the most threatening prehistoric predators and just knew the Tyrannosaurus Rex had to be on the list. Of course, we could not let you down there. Sadly, we must burst your bubble and say they did not look quite like the T-Rex you see from Jurassic Park. They also were not around for as long as people think as they came in during the Late Cretaceous period.

In spite of not technically being a reptile, the T-Rex is also the last of the dinosaurs to be non-avian. However, they still connect to birds, mostly the Ratites or large flightless birds, like Ostriches. Yet they grew in lengths of up to 40 feet and heights of around 12 to 13 feet. They also would have weighed at least 14 metric tons on average or just under 31,000lbs. The T-Rex also had a bite force of around 12,000lbs. Of course, they also likely had a lot of feathers and hair too. Which is kind of comical.

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