List of megafauna discovered in modern times
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The following is a list of megafauna discovered by science since the beginning of the 19th century (with their respective date of discovery). Some of these may have been known to native peoples or reported anecdotally but had not been generally acknowledged as confirmed by the scientific world, until conclusive evidence was obtained for formal studies. In other cases, certain animals were initially considered hoaxes – similar to the initial reception of mounted specimens of the duck-billed platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) [1] in late 18th-century Europe. Additionally, some cases can be of animals believed to have died out centuries ago, only to be rediscovered alive.
In zoology, megafauna (from Greek μέγας megas "large" and Neo-Latin fauna "animal life") are large animals. The most common thresholds to be a megafauna are weighing over 46 kilograms (100 lb)[2][3][4] (i.e., having a mass comparable to or larger than a human) or weighing over a tonne, 1,000 kilograms (2,205 lb)[2][5][6] (i.e., having a mass comparable to or larger than an ox).
This list includes some of the more notable examples discovered in modern times.
Megafauna believed extinct, but rediscovered
[edit]
- Coelacanths (Latimeria) – Believed to have gone extinct during the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, rediscovered off the coast of east South Africa in 1938.[7]
- False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) – Initially described as an extinct porpoise in 1843 from a skull dating to the Middle Pleistocene around 126,000 years ago, rediscovered at the Bay of Kiel in 1861.[8]
- Fernandina Island tortoise (Chelonoidis niger phantasticus) – Subspecies of the Galápagos tortoise that was previously only known from a single male specimen collected in 1906, rediscovered in 2019 as part of the Extinct or Alive television series.[9]
Megafauna previously unknown from the fossil record
[edit]
- American alligator (A. mississippiensis) (1802)[10]
- Western grey kangaroo (Notamacropus fuliginosus) (1817)
- Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus) (1819)
- Red kangaroo (Osphranter rufus) (1822)
- Lowland anoa (Bubalus depressicornis) (1827)
- Mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque) (1829)
- Baird's tapir (Tapirus bairdii) (1865)
- Giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) – Known to the Chinese since ancient times, but not formally described by Europeans until 1869.[11] Additionally, a subspecies was first described in 1959, but was not recognised as such until 2005.[12]
- Bonobo (Pan paniscus) (1928)
- Kouprey (Bos sauveli) (1937)
- Megamouth shark (Megachasma pelagios) (1983)
- Saola Pseudoryx nghetinhensis (1993)
Megafauna initially believed to have been fictitious or hoaxes
[edit]
- Gorillas (Gorilla) – Millenia worth of anecdotal reports[14] and accounts of hairy men and women[15] in western Africa, first described formally in 1845 from a dead Liberian specimen.[16]
- Okapi (Okapia johnstoni) – Initially referred to as the "African unicorn" by Europeans due to its elusive nature prior to its formal discovery in 1901.[17]
- Giant squid (Architeuthis dux) – Millenia worth of folklore, mythology, and anecdotal reports, first described formally in 1873 from a dead specimen in Newfoundland and recorded alive in 2006.[18]
- Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) – Anecdotal reports of "land crocodiles" by Europeans in 1910, live specimens transported to the London Zoo in 1927.[19][20]
See also
[edit]- Animals in ancient Greece and Rome
- List of mammals described in the 2000s
- List of giant squid specimens and sightings
References
[edit]- ^ Duckbilled Platypus Museum of Hoaxes.
- ^ a b Stuart, A. J. (November 1991). "Mammalian extinctions in the Late Pleistocene of northern Eurasia and North America". Biological Reviews. 66 (4): 453–562. doi:10.1111/j.1469-185X.1991.tb01149.x. PMID 1801948. S2CID 41295526.
- ^ Martin, P. S. (1984). "Prehistoric overkill: The global model". In Martin, P. S.; Klein, R. G. (eds.). Quaternary Extinctions: A Prehistoric Revolution. University of Arizona Press. pp. 354–403. ISBN 978-0-8165-1100-6. OCLC 258362030.
- ^ Martin, P. S.; Steadman, D. W. (1999-06-30). "Prehistoric extinctions on islands and continents". In MacPhee, R. D. E (ed.). Extinctions in near time: causes, contexts and consequences. Advances in Vertebrate Paleobiology. Vol. 2. New York: Kluwer/Plenum. pp. 17–56. ISBN 978-0-306-46092-0. OCLC 41368299. Retrieved 2011-08-23. see page 17
- ^ Richard A. Farina; Sergio F. Vizcaino; Gerry De Iuliis (2013). "The Great American Biotic Interchange". Megafauna: Giant Beasts of Pleistocene South America. Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-253-00230-3.
- ^ Bernhard A. Huber; Bradley J. Sinclair; Karl-Heinz Lampe (2005). "Historical Determinants of Mammal Species in Africa". African Biodiversity: Molecules, Organisms, Ecosystems. Springer. p. 294. ISBN 978-0-387-24315-3.
- ^ Smith, J. L. B. (1956). Old Fourlegs: the Story of the Coelacanth. Longmans Green. p. 24.
- ^ "PBDB Taxon". paleobiodb.org. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
- ^ "Fernandina giant tortoise—once thought extinct—found in Galápagos". web.archive.org. 2019-02-23. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
- ^ "ITIS - Report: Alligator mississippiensis". www.itis.gov. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
- ^ Muséum national d'histoire naturelle (France); naturelle (France), Muséum national d'histoire (1869). Nouvelles archives du Muséum d'histoire naturelle. Vol. t.5 (1869). Paris: Masson et Cie.
- ^ "秦岭大熊猫被确认为新亚种----中国科学院". www.cas.cn. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
- ^ Gerhardt, Mia I. (1966-01-01). "Knowledge in decline". Vivarium. 4 (1): 144–175. doi:10.1163/156853466X00079. ISSN 1568-5349.
- ^ "NOVA Online | The Beast of Loch Ness | Fantastic Creatures (2)". www.pbs.org. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
- ^ Hanno (1995). Oikonomides, Alkibiades N. (ed.). Periplus: or circumnavigation (of Africa) (3. ed., new material added 1995 ed.). Chicago: Ares. ISBN 978-0-89005-217-4.
- ^ Conniff, Richard (2009). "Discovering gorilla". Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews. 18 (2): 55–61. doi:10.1002/evan.20203. ISSN 1520-6505.
- ^ Andrei, Mihai (2008-09-12). "First pictures of the okapi or the African 'unicorn'". ZME Science. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
- ^ Geographic, Australian (2021-08-31). "The giant squid: a short history". Australian Geographic. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
- ^ Ciofi, Claudio (1999-03-01). "The Komodo Dragon". Scientific American. 280: 84–91. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0399-84. ISSN 0036-8733.
- ^ Chalmers Mitchell, Peter (15 June 1927). "Reptiles at the Zoo: Opening of new house today". The London Times. London, UK. p. 17.
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