Marsupial Spotlight: The Marsupial Lion

As I come close to the end of my Marsupial Spotlights, I would like to showcase two prehistoric examples of the infraclass. Today, we will look at the extinct marsupial lions. I will tell you all that I know about them. It is not much, but that comes with the territory of prehistoric creatures.

The marsupial lion was the largest meat-eating mammal to have ever lived in Australia. They stood 30 inches high and were 59 inches from head to tail. They looked a lot like big cats; however, they were not cats at all. I suppose you may remember the thylacine from my previous blog. The thylacine has more of a canine style face, but the marsupial lion was believed to have more of a cat-like face.

Unlike cats, the marsupial lion had an opposable thumb on each paw. These were perhaps used for climbing as they are similarly made to the possums; however, they also seem to be extremely useful for grappling with prey. Similar to the thylacine, the marsupial lion was likely not a very fast runner. Instead, they would use sneaking tactics and pounce upon their prey.

Their jaw was not very marsupial-like. The teeth were made up more like that of a cat or a dog. The only unusual thing about them were these long sets of blade-like teeth on the sides that likely acted like powerful shears. This animal had very little trouble tearing a body apart. It could snap skin, muscles, and perhaps, bones in two while it ate. It brings a lot of grizzly imagery to the imagination, doesn't it?

I couldn't find much more on its behavior other than how it hunted. That is unfortunately what I have to work with--being that they are long gone from our world. It is even hard to say what their pelt would look like. One of the drawings I have shows them with fun stripes on their back. That is more plausible than you may think. They were likely looking on to the thylacine as a potential example. Why not? Personally, I think they look good on them.

The marsupial lion is not as popular as the thylacine, and that is likely because we were able to spend a little time with the latter before he died away. I have found no examples of the marsupial lion in fiction. Personally, I think they would be a strong hunter class. I see them using spears and relying heavily on stealth. The cat-like aspect would likely show them to be independent creatures who do not mix well with other hunters. Eat what you kill; survive on your own wits. That is what they seem to be all about.

So, there is one last Marsupial Spotlight on the way. Please, look forward to it. It's a big one!

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