Megalonyx jeffersoni, ground sloth juvenile skull, Now The West Virginia State Fossil Kentrosaurus These extended back into the

These extended back into the throat and further prevented prey from escaping while being swallowed

grinding up the food

or onto their own bodies

It is one of the very first herbivorous tetrapods

The strange-looking reconstruction was soon confirmed

Megalonyx jeffersoni, ground sloth juvenile skull, Now The West Virginia State Fossil Kentrosaurus These extended back into thePresident, Thomas Jefferson, scientifically described fossil bones given to him by saltpeter miners found in a Monroe County cave in 1797. Jefferson thought they were the claws of a giant cat. In 1799 Casper Wistar re described the bones as a new species of extinct giant ground sloth and named it in honor of President Jefferson. Only recently have the bones been Carbon 14 dated at over 38,000 year old. On March 8, 2008 Megalonyx jeffersoni became the