The saber-toothed cat genus that lived throughout the Americas during the Pleistocene and disappeared about 10,000 years ago was Smilodon.
Smilodon was an extinct genus of machairodont cats, not a close relative of modern tigers despite the popular nickname “saber-toothed tiger.” Its most famous feature was a pair of elongated upper canine teeth. Three species are generally recognized: Smilodon gracilis, Smilodon fatalis, and Smilodon populator.
The genus lived in both North and South America. Smilodon fatalis is especially well known from California’s La Brea Tar Pits, where thousands of fossils were preserved. Smilodon populator was larger and lived mainly in South America. The cats likely used powerful forelimbs to hold prey while delivering a precise bite, although the details of their hunting behavior remain debated.
Smilodon vanished during the end-Pleistocene megafaunal extinction, alongside many large herbivores. Possible causes include climate and habitat changes, human hunting pressure on prey, and the loss of large animals on which the cats depended. Homotherium was another saber-toothed cat, but it was a separate genus.