Extinction
Latest about Extinct Species
![A computer-generated image of large saber-tooth cat in long grass](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/etcSiqrB7ZfikPPuiHapzF-320-80.jpg)
5 million-year-old fossils reveal 2 new species of saber-toothed cats in South Africa
By Harry Baker published
The pair of newfound species, as well as two previously known species unearthed in the same place, rewrite what we knew about these prehistoric predators.
![three red sea squirts attached to a coral bed with white strands](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ckGL6zAfDkhd5cjdmrwZd3-320-80.jpg)
Half-billion-year-old fossil of strange Cambrian creature gives evolutionary clues about vertebrates
By Sarah Moore published
The fossil of an ancient sea squirt found in a collection at the Utah Museum of Natural History turned out to be the oldest of its kind.
![a saber-tooth cat and a dire wolf on a black background](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GpPbSbZrJaFqnxB3xKticn-320-80.jpg)
Dire wolves and saber-toothed cats may have gotten arthritis as they inbred themselves to extinction
By Ethan Freedman published
Bones from the two ancient predatory species were found in the La Brea tar pits in what is now West Hollywood and showed signs of bone disease not normally seen in wild animals.
![An artist's depiction of Anomalocaris canadensis. The grey-colored creature is depicted swimming underwater and has a whale-like tail, appendages extending from either side of its long body, and two curved facial spikes on its head](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/aFaACJUUVMRCmVJhogynMn-320-80.jpeg)
500 million-year-old 'abnormal shrimp' used facial spikes to 'pincushion' soft prey
By Jennifer Nalewicki published
Scientists have solved the mystery of what Anomalocaris canadensis, an extinct apex predator, may have eaten.
![bones and teeth strewn inside a cave](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/SHSMKNgRfeHCXr2SJV6cCX-320-80.jpg)
Siberian cave filled with mammoth, rhino and bear bones is ancient hyena lair
By Kristin Hugo published
The cave has been untouched for around 42,000 years. It also contained the bones and teeth of hyena pups, suggesting they raised their young there.
![Illustration of a lizard-like creature under the ocean along with a few fish and another animal that resembles a snail](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/9YpoL8WmYdFKaxwMwW7AEA-320-80.jpg)
94 million-year-old fossilized sea monster is the oldest of its kind in North America
By Kiley Price published
A team of researchers uncovered a tiny mosasaur fossil in the gray shale rocks of southern Utah — a discovery that could teach us more about this ancient sea beast's evolutionary history.
![A recreation of a hadrosaur drinking water from a stream](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HV4uEUZZS5Lq2NiddBkn7S-320-80.jpg)
Never-before-seen 'missing link' dinosaur walks, drinks and socializes in stunning new animation
By Harry Baker published
The newly discovered duck-billed dinosaur, Gonkoken nanoi, likely grew to around 13 feet long and weighed up to 1 ton, new analysis reveals.
![The skull of the ancient dolphin Nihohae matakoi, which had jutting out teeth at the end of its snout, on a black background](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7wNwiuoFPgxByhu2nb7zjm-320-80.jpg)
25 million-year-old 'slasher' dolphin with weird teeth discovered in museum collection
By Kristin Hugo published
Researchers believe the creature, named Nihohae matakoi, used its horizontal teeth to thrash at prey before gulping it down.
![An artist's illustration of a megalodon shark.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/uxpZcdvA24F8pMV5R5JAwA-320-80.jpg)
Megalodon was a warm-blooded killer, but that may have doomed it to extinction
By Jennifer Nalewicki published
Scientists studied the fossilized teeth of megalodon and determined that the jumbo-size extinct species of shark was warm-blooded.
![two boulders in a stream with vertebrate fossils](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/icTT8eKgbjQzBzNGySj6uG-320-80.jpg)
Deadly cyclone unearths fossils of giant marine creatures that lived 80 million years ago
By Hannah Osborne published
"It's like a giant has walked down the stream-bed, kicking at rocks and boulders as if they were pebbles," Pete Shaw, forest manager of the Forest Lifeforce Restoration Trust, said in a statement.
Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.