Odd Tooth?

[worthy 55]

I have shown this tooth earlyer and we came up with a Dire Wolf incisor but looking at it again it seams to have serrations on the cutting edges? Take another look.

Edited February 10, 2010 by worthy 55

[Harry Pristis]

I have shown this tooth earlyer and we came up with a Dire Wolf incisor but looking at it again it seams to have serrations on the cutting edges? Take another look.

This tooth resembles no incisor, neither dog nor cat, with which I am familiar.

It more resembles a canine, but not a lower canine from Xenosmilus which has a serrated carina. I am not familiar with the lower canines of sabercats or dirktooth cats.

[gregg]

What's the scale?

[gregg]

Ok, rule number 3 of posting: Look at all the pics before you respond.

Given the scale I would agree with Harry Pristis. With a crown slightly over .5in. it looks way too robust for Caninae. As far as the serrations, they are found on raccoons, bears, dogs, cats, almost all the carnivores. I believe it to be a seam created as the enamel forms on the tooth before eruption. It might indicate you have the tooth of a juvenile. In the skulls I have from older animals that ridge is gone.

[Harry Pristis]

It may be, Worthy, that your tooth was not fully developed - still in the crypt - when the animal expired. That might explain a large pulp cavity (my impression) and the crispness of the carinae.

I still don't know what it is from, though. You can see the canid pattern on the wolf upper canine here. Though it appears that there are serrations on the lingual carina, they are not evident under a finger nail.

Notice how weak is the cingulum (the little shelf of enamel ringing the tooth, at least part-way in this case). In the image of the wolf lower canine, you can see that there is no cingulum at all. The cingulum on your mystery tooth is strong.

Serrations in carnivore teeth are like serrations in shark teeth. They are an adaptation to more efficiently shear flesh. Prominent examples are found in the canines of large cats that formerly lived here - obligate meat-eaters.

Bears and dogs have taken a different evolutionary path, adapting to a more omnivorus habitus. Thus, serrated teeth offer no selective advantage to these groups. Do bear canines have serrations? . . . even on unerupted canines? Not to my knowledge (which is limited). None of my bear canines or cat canines show serrations.

I do have a Florida cave bear canine with a cingulum between the two carinae. Maybe that's a clue.

Let us know what you find out.

[Guest Smilodon]

I hope you are sitting down, only from the pictures you provided, which are not enough to be sure, you might be a holder of a lower Smilodon canine. And that's not just a wild guess - It's from a true carnivore expert - not me.

If I don't know something, I know who does.

(Probably) Congrats!

[worthy 55]

I am going to try to get someone at the FMNH in Gainesville to take a look at it next time I go there. Smilodon would be very cool one can only hope.

[worthy 55]

Looks like I may have found a match but I want to get another opinion before I label it for sure . I think this is it though they match up well size and all?

[barefootgirl]

Congrats Worthy that's a nice tooth.

[Phoenixflood]

Very cool! Let us know when you find out from the museum.

[Shellseeker]

On 2/10/2010 at 3:24 PM, Harry Pristis said:

It may be, Worthy, that your tooth was not fully developed - still in the crypt - when the animal expired. That might explain a large pulp cavity (my impression) and the crispness of the carinae.

I am trying to satisfy curiosity about this tooth. I know a lot about it but not all I would like to know. I believe that there is a connection to this old thread that I found by searching TFF. Harry introduces me to the word "carinae".  There seems to be 2 carina on this tooth or maybe not.. 

All help appreciated...  SS