Bears and Big Cats Interactions during Prehistoric Times

[brotherbear]

(02-08-2016, 12:05 AM)Spalea Wrote: Very fascinating studies and accounts ! Thank !

I retain that cave lions were serious competitors with the cave bears. A more serious opponent against cave bear than any actual predator towards grizzly bears. The main question is to determine how sociable these big cats were. As concerns the cave lion and also the panthera athrox in North America about his behaviour with the Arctodus Simus.

If these pleistocene lions were as sociable as the actual lions, we can think that even an giant short faced bear could not expel a lions pride from a kill. The giant short faced bear and the north american lion (in prides) being together the apex predators.

The animals life of the pleistocene age were undoubtedly high-risk...

As you suggest, there is to the best of my knowledge no conclusive evidence that either Smilodon or Atrox lived in groups as does the modern lion. But, even if they did, would they stand their ground against a bear standing roughly 6 feet high at the shoulders, eleven feet tall on his hind legs, and weighing perhaps a full ton or more, in defense of a carcass? We can only guess. But, until strong evidence appears showing a giant short-faced bear as been killed by a big cat, I will lean towards such an occurrence as being similar to a large male African lion approaching a carcass surrounded by spotted hyenas or like a Tyrannosaurus rex approaching a carcass surrounded by raptors. I believe that the big cats would very likely relinquish their kill. However, with only fossil bones to study, it is all guesswork and personal opinions. Reply