Post by dinosauria101 on Sept 11, 2019 9:00:13 GMT 5
European Cave Lion (pride of 2) - Panthera leo spelaea
Panthera spelaea, also known as the Eurasian cave lion, European cave lion, or steppe lion,[1] is an extinct Panthera species that evolved in Europe probably after the third Cromerian interglacial stage, less than 600,000 years ago.
P. spelaea is known from Paleolithic cave paintings, ivory carvings, and clay figurines. These archaeological artifacts indicate that it may have been featured in Paleolithic religious rituals.[16][17] A drawing in France's Chauvet cave, estimated to be 30,000 years old, depicts two cave lions walking together. The one in the foreground is slightly smaller than the one in the background, which has been drawn with a scrotum and without a mane.[18] This suggests male cave lions completely lacked manes, or had very small manes.[5]
Prior to its split from Panthera leo, cave lions were thought to have been one of the largest lion subspecies. The skeleton of an adult male found in 1985 near Siegsdorf in Germany had a shoulder height of around 1.2 m (3.9 ft) and a head-body length of 2.1 m (6.9 ft) without the tail, similar in size to large modern lions. The size of this male was exceeded by other specimens. This suggests, P. spelaea may have been over 10% larger than modern lions, but smaller than the earlier Panthera fossilis or the later American lion.[19] Like modern lions, females were smaller than males.[20]
Aurochs (Pleistocene) - Bos primigenius
The aurochs (/ˈɔːrɒks/ or /ˈaʊrɒks/; pl. aurochs, or rarely aurochsen, aurochses), also known as urus or ure (Bos primigenius), is an extinct species of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It is the ancestor of domestic cattle; it has also been suggested as an ancestor genetically to the modern European bison, which have been crossbred with steppe bison.[2] The species survived in Europe until 1627, when the last recorded aurochs died in the Jaktorów Forest, Poland.
The aurochs were one of the largest herbivores in postglacial Europe, comparable to the wisent (European bison). The size of an aurochs appears to have varied by region; in Europe, northern populations were bigger on average than those from the south. For example, during the Holocene, aurochs from Denmark and Germany had an average height at the shoulders of 155–180 cm (61–71 in) in bulls and 135–155 cm (53–61 in) in cows, while aurochs populations in Hungary had bulls reaching 155–160 cm (61–63 in).[24] The body mass of aurochs appears to have shown some variability. Some individuals were comparable in weight to the wisent and the banteng, reaching around 700 kg (1,540 lb), whereas those from the late-middle Pleistocene are estimated to have weighed up to 1,500 kg (3,310 lb), as much as the largest gaur (the largest extant bovid).[10] The sexual dimorphism between bulls and cows was strongly expressed, with the cows being significantly shorter than bulls on average.
Credit to Wikipedia
Panthera spelaea, also known as the Eurasian cave lion, European cave lion, or steppe lion,[1] is an extinct Panthera species that evolved in Europe probably after the third Cromerian interglacial stage, less than 600,000 years ago.
P. spelaea is known from Paleolithic cave paintings, ivory carvings, and clay figurines. These archaeological artifacts indicate that it may have been featured in Paleolithic religious rituals.[16][17] A drawing in France's Chauvet cave, estimated to be 30,000 years old, depicts two cave lions walking together. The one in the foreground is slightly smaller than the one in the background, which has been drawn with a scrotum and without a mane.[18] This suggests male cave lions completely lacked manes, or had very small manes.[5]
Prior to its split from Panthera leo, cave lions were thought to have been one of the largest lion subspecies. The skeleton of an adult male found in 1985 near Siegsdorf in Germany had a shoulder height of around 1.2 m (3.9 ft) and a head-body length of 2.1 m (6.9 ft) without the tail, similar in size to large modern lions. The size of this male was exceeded by other specimens. This suggests, P. spelaea may have been over 10% larger than modern lions, but smaller than the earlier Panthera fossilis or the later American lion.[19] Like modern lions, females were smaller than males.[20]
Aurochs (Pleistocene) - Bos primigenius
The aurochs (/ˈɔːrɒks/ or /ˈaʊrɒks/; pl. aurochs, or rarely aurochsen, aurochses), also known as urus or ure (Bos primigenius), is an extinct species of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It is the ancestor of domestic cattle; it has also been suggested as an ancestor genetically to the modern European bison, which have been crossbred with steppe bison.[2] The species survived in Europe until 1627, when the last recorded aurochs died in the Jaktorów Forest, Poland.
The aurochs were one of the largest herbivores in postglacial Europe, comparable to the wisent (European bison). The size of an aurochs appears to have varied by region; in Europe, northern populations were bigger on average than those from the south. For example, during the Holocene, aurochs from Denmark and Germany had an average height at the shoulders of 155–180 cm (61–71 in) in bulls and 135–155 cm (53–61 in) in cows, while aurochs populations in Hungary had bulls reaching 155–160 cm (61–63 in).[24] The body mass of aurochs appears to have shown some variability. Some individuals were comparable in weight to the wisent and the banteng, reaching around 700 kg (1,540 lb), whereas those from the late-middle Pleistocene are estimated to have weighed up to 1,500 kg (3,310 lb), as much as the largest gaur (the largest extant bovid).[10] The sexual dimorphism between bulls and cows was strongly expressed, with the cows being significantly shorter than bulls on average.
Credit to Wikipedia
