European Hippopotamus
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| European Hippopotamus Fossil range: Early Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene |
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| Hippopotamus antiquus Desmarest 1822[1] |
The European Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus antiquus) was a species of hippopotamus that ranged across Europe, becoming extinct some time before the last ice age at the end of the Pleistocene epoch. H. antiquus ranged from the Iberian Peninsula to the British Isles to the Rhine River to Greece.[2]
The European Hippo was similar in size and form to Hippopotamus gorgops, and much larger than the common Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius). The European Hippo is believed to have first appeared around 1.8 million years ago, compared to 2 million years ago for H. amphibius. Beginning in the Middle Pleistocene, H. amphibius also lived in Europe, but is not considered a European Hippopotamus. [3]
The Cretan Dwarf Hippopotamus (H. creutzburgi) is believed to be derived from the European Hippopotamus through the process of insular dwarfism on the island of Crete.
[edit] References
- ^ · Desmarest, A.G., 1822. Mammalogie ou description des espèces de mammifères. Mme Veuve Agasse imprimeur édit., Paris, 2ème part., pp.277-555.
- ^ "150 Years of Neanderthal Discoveries; Early Europeans - Continuity & Discontinuity," ed. von Koenigswald, Wighart and Thomas Litt, TERRA NOSTRA 2006/2 University of Bonn, in PDF
- ^ Petronio, C. (1995): Note on the taxonomy of Pleistocene hippopotamuses. Ibex 3: 53-55. PDF fulltext
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