Aussie Mega Beasts: Giant Marsupials Once Roamed Australia
Posted on June 4, 2005
Australian's marsupials are loved the world over for the uniqueness and cuteness. But what if they were ten times their size? Would they still be considered cute and furry or would they be considered beasts? The truth is that over 40,000 years ago the marsupials that populated Australia were actually quite large and frightening. There was the marsupial lion, which the BBC reports had the "most powerful bite of any mammal species -- living or extinct."
There was also the D. optatum, a massive wombat that the BBC says "reached more than two and a half tonnes on average." And there were many, many other giant marsupials and dangerous creatures that used to roam Australia including meat-eating kangaroos according to another BBC new story:
One of those monsters was a seven-metre long goanna lizard (Megalania prisca). An adult would have weighed up to 600 kg. Then there were the tree-climbing crocodiles, (Trilophosuchus rackhami) nicknamed the "drop crocs" for the way they are thought to have leapt down on to their victims.Professor Archer told the BBC, "And if that didn't get you, there were meat-eating kangaroos that would have stood up at your shoulder and torn your arm off."
Yes, Australia would not have been a very safe place 40,000 years ago.