Taurotragus arkelli

Taurotragus arkelli is an extinct species of eland from Eastern Africa that lived during the Pleistocene. T. arkelli was roughly 5.5 m (18 ft) long and 2.3 m (7 ft 7 in) tall, making it larger than the extant Giant eland.

Taurotragus arkelli Temporal range: Pleistocene
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Family:	Bovidae
Subfamily:	Bovinae
Genus:	Taurotragus
Species:	†T. arkelli
Binomial name
†Taurotragus arkelli Leakey, 1965

Description

Taurotragus arkelli was first described L.S.B. Leakey in 1965 from the Olduvai Gorge (Bed IV) in Tanzania. The material assigned to the species consists of a cranium and horn cores.^[1]

T. arkelli is regarded as the ancestor of the modern common eland.^[2] In comparison to modern eland, T. arkelli shows what are considered primitive characteristics for the genus, such as a longer braincase and horn cores slightly more upright.^[3]

References

1. Leakey, L.S.B. (1965). Olduvai Gorge: Volume 1. Cambridge University Press. pp. 43–44. ISBN 052105527X.
2. Furstenburg, Deon (2016). Eland (Tragelaphus oryx). Briza Publications. pp. 173–179.
3. Bubenik, Anthony B. (2012). Horns, Pronghorns, and Antlers: Evolution, Morphology, Physiology, and Social Significance. Springer New York. p. 210. ISBN 9781461389668.