Dire wolves were larger and more robust than today's gray wolves—about 5 feet long and up to 150 pounds.
They had stronger jaws and teeth adapted for crushing bone, suggesting they may have scavenged as much as they hunted.
But they were not as fast or agile, which might have been a disadvantage when faster prey and predators evolved.
Dire wolves roamed North and South America during the Pleistocene Epoch (about 125,000 to 10,000 years ago).
They shared the land with saber-toothed cats, giant ground sloths, mammoths, and other Ice Age megafauna.