![]() ![]() Astrapotherium was a typical example: this hooved ungulate (a distant relative of horses) looked like a cross between an elephant, a tapir, and a rhinoceros, with a short, prehensile trunk and powerful tusks. Size and Weight: About nine feet long and 500-1,000 poundsĭistinguishing Characteristics: Long, squat trunk long neck and headĭuring the Miocene epoch, South America was cut off from the rest of the world's continents, resulting in the evolution of a bizarre array of mammalian megafauna. Historical Epoch: Early-Middle Miocene (23-15 million years ago) Name: Astrapotherium (Greek for "lightning beast") pronounced AS-trap-oh-THEE-ree-um Arsinoitherium was also equipped with 44 flat, stumpy teeth in its jaws, which were well-adapted to chewing the extra-tough plants of its Egyptian habitat circa 30 million years ago. However, what really set this prehistoric mammal apart from the other megafauna of the Eocene epoch were the two large, conical, pointed horns jutting out from the middle of its forehead, which were likely a sexually selected characteristic rather than anything meant to intimidate predators (meaning that males with bigger, pointier horns had a better chance of pairing up with females during mating season). Size and Weight: About 10 feet long and one tonĭistinguishing Characteristics: Rhinoceros-like trunk two conical horns on head quadrupedal posture primitive teethĪlthough it wasn't directly ancestral to the modern rhinoceros, Arsinoitherium (the name refers to the mythical Egyptian Queen Arsenoe) cut a very rhino-like profile, with its stumpy legs, squat trunk and herbivorous diet. Historical Epoch: Late Eocene-Early Oligocene (35-30 million years ago) Name: Arsinoitherium (Greek for "Arsenoe's beast," after a mythical queen of Egypt) pronounced ARE-sih-noy-THEE-re-um Like modern bears, Agriotherium supplemented its diet with fish, fruit, vegetables, and pretty much any other kind of digestible food it happened across.Īrsinoitherium. Agriotherium was characterized by its relatively long legs (which gave it a vaguely dog-like appearance) and blunt snout studded with massive, bone-crushing teeth-a hint that this prehistoric bear may have scavenged the carcasses of other megafauna mammals rather than hunting live prey. One of the largest bears that ever lived, the half-ton Agriotherium achieved a remarkably wide distribution during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs, reaching as far as North America, Eurasia and Africa. ![]() Size and Weight: Up to eight feet long and 1,000-1,500 poundsĭistinguishing Characteristics: Large size long legs dog-like build Historical Period: Late Miocene-Early Pleistocene (10-2 million years ago) Habitat: Plains of North America, Eurasia and Africa ![]() Name: Agriotherium (Greek for "sour beast") pronounced AG-ree-oh-THEE-ree-um ![]()
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