Smilodon, the "Knife Tooth," is commonly referred to as the saber- toothed tiger despite its very  distant relations to tigers. It was a very robust feline, with the  largest species (Smilodon populator) weighing in at a whopping four hundred kilograms. It stood around 120 centimeters tall, which is  comparable to the height of a tiger.  Its iconic canines were 28  centimeters long and relatively  fragile; they could not be used to  take down prey but were rather used  to deliver the killing bite to the  throat. This, and the fact that  their powerful bodies were built for jumping, makes Smilodon into a  highly efficient killing machine.  All species of Smilodon lived in the Pleistocene Epoch, covering a  territory that stretched from North  to South America. They likely hunted in packs, working together to bring  down large mammals in forest and bush environments. Their proficiency  in jumping means that they may have  been ambush predators like many  modern big cats. However, although  apex predators, Smilodon faced  several threats. Ravenous cave lions  and dire wolves competed with  Smilodon for the same resources, and  confrontations were certain. They also fell victim to the infamous tar  pits, such as the ones in La Brea, California.