Five-million-year-old saber-toothed cat in newly discovered genus discovered in Florida

A new genus and species of extinct saber-toothed cat has been discovered in Polk County, Florida. The 5-million-year-old fossils belong to the same lineage as the famous Smilodon fatalis from the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, a large, carnivorous apex predator with elongated upper canine teeth. Previous research suggested the group of saber-toothed cats known as Smilodontini originated in the Old World and then migrated to North America, but the age of the new species indicates the group likely originated in North America.