Scientists have uncovered evidence of ancient humans engaged in a deadly faceoff with a giant sloth, showing for the first time how our ancestors might have tackled such a formidable prey.
Standing over 2 meters tall, with forelegs tipped with claws, giant sloths lived until around 11,000 years ago. Most scientists believe over-hunting by humans eventually led to their extinction.
Fossilized footprints in the salt flats of White Sands National Monument, in New Mexico, reveal humans walking in the exact footsteps of a giant sloth and then confronting it, possibly hurling spears.