Thrills and Chills: Animals of the Ice Age

Have you ever walked outside, it was over one-hundred degrees, and you prayed for some sort of cool breeze to brush against your skin? Even the neighbor’s cat on your lawn seemed to have a miserable face about it, and cats can’t even make faces (to the best of your knowledge). Now, picture your somewhat muggy outside covered completely in snow, and that cool breeze you desperately longed for turning out to be a blistering, negative-twelve-degree gust. Ponder the idea of your neighbor’s pesky little cat being the size of the average tiger, with two gigantic, razor sharp teeth. This was what one could expect on an average day during a period of our Earth scientists call the Ice Age.

There have been many ice ages in the history of Earth, with the earliest one estimated to have occurred 2.7 – 2.3 billion years ago and the most recent one ending 10,000 years ago. In this time frame, many beasts have roamed the Earth, equipped with thick fur coats and vicious temperaments, geared towards surviving each day of their rugged lives.

When the ice ages ended, most of the mammals that journeyed the earth died out, leaving nothing but bones, fossils, and a few preserved frozen bodies to prove their existence. With this evidence, scientists and artists crafted images of wooly mammoths, cave bears, hairy rhinos, giant deer, and of course, ferocious saber-toothed tigers to brighten the imagination of modern-day people. With the Ice Age Animals collection, you can travel to that time of blistering cold and danger, but be careful; the neighbor’s cat might be little more of a threat to your birds.