''Sivatherium'' ("Shiva's beast", from

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

and ''therium'', Latinized form of Ancient Greek θηρίον -'' thēríon'') is an extinct genus of giraffids that ranged throughout

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

to the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

. The species ''Sivatherium giganteum'' is, by weight, one of the largest giraffid known, and also one of the largest

ruminant Ruminants (suborder Ruminantia) are ungulate, hoofed herbivorous grazing or browsing mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by Enteric fermentation, fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally ...

s of all time. ''Sivatherium'' originated during the Late

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

(around 7 million years ago) in Africa and survived through to the late Early Pleistocene ( Calabrian) ''S. giganteum'' remains have been recovered from the Himalayan foothills, dating around 1 million years ago. Suggestions have been made that ''S. maurusium'' may have gone extinct as recently as 8,000 years ago, as depictions that resemble it are known from ancient

rock painting In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...

s in the

Sahara , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

and Central West India. But these claims are not substantiated by fossil evidence, and the depictions likely represent other animals.

Description

''Sivatherium'' resembled the modern

okapi The okapi (; ''Okapia johnstoni''), also known as the forest giraffe, Congolese giraffe, or zebra giraffe, is an artiodactyl mammal that is endemic to the northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. It is the only species i ...

, but was far larger, and more heavily built, being about tall at the

shoulder The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder mak ...

, in total height with a weight up to . A newer estimate has come up with an estimated body mass of about or . This would make ''Sivatherium'' one of the largest known ruminants, rivalling the modern giraffe and the largest bovines. This weight estimate is thought to be an underestimate, as it does not take into account the large horns possessed by males of the species. ''Sivatherium'' had a wide,

antler Antlers are extensions of an animal's skull found in members of the Cervidae (deer) family. Antlers are a single structure composed of bone, cartilage, fibrous tissue, skin, nerves, and blood vessels. They are generally found only on male ...

-like pair of

ossicone Ossicones are columnar or conical skin-covered bone structures on the heads of giraffes, male okapi, and some of their extinct relatives. Ossicones are distinguished from the superficially similar structures of horns and antlers by their uniqu ...

s on its head, and a second pair of ossicones above its eyes. Its shoulders were very powerful to support the

neck The neck is the part of the body on many vertebrates that connects the head with the torso. The neck supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that carry sensory and motor information from the brain down to the rest of the body. In ...

muscle Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other types of muscl ...

s required to lift the heavy

skull The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...

. Sivatherium was initially misidentified as an archaic link between modern ruminants and the now obsolete, polyphyletic "pachyderms" (elephants, rhinoceroses, horses and tapirs). The confusion arose in part due to the graviportal (robust) morphology, which was unlike anything else studied at that time.

Diet

A dental wear analysis of ''S. hendeyi'' from the Early Pliocene of South Africa found that the teeth were brachyodont, but had a higher

hypsodonty Hypsodont is a pattern of dentition with high-crowned teeth and enamel extending past the gum line, providing extra material for wear and tear. Some examples of animals with hypsodont dentition are cows and horses; all animals that feed on gritt ...

than a giraffe, and that it was best classified as a mixed feeder, being able to both graze and browse.

References

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q899506 Miocene mammals of Africa Pliocene mammals of Africa Pleistocene mammals of Africa Miocene mammals of Asia Pliocene mammals of Asia Pleistocene mammals of Asia Prehistoric giraffes Pliocene even-toed ungulates Pleistocene even-toed ungulates Prehistoric even-toed ungulate genera Miocene first appearances Pleistocene extinctions Fossil taxa described in 1836

Description

Diet

See also

References

Further reading

External links