Broad-fronted Moose

Cervalces latifrons

Resurrected on:

19 dec. 2020

Genus information

Cervalces is an extinct genus of large deer that lived throughout the Northern Hemisphere during the Pliocene and Pleistocene epoch. The genus shows much resemblance with a moose, but is thought to be a deer that adapted body features which made it look like one. It is therefore believed that it inhabited the same habitats as extant moose and fulfilled the same ecological niches, like living close to water and feeding on aquatic vegetation besides browsing on bushes and trees. Several species are known and all wore massive antlers, of which some could reach 1.3 meters in length each!

Family:

Distribution:

Epoch:

Cervidae

Northern Hemisphere

Pliocene to Pleistocene

Species information

The Broad-fronted Moose was the largest species of deer during the Pleistocene epoch of Europe and Russia. It could grow up to 2.5 meters at the shoulders and weighted about 1.200 kg! Its antlers were massive and could grow up to 2.5 meters from tip to tip. It lived in tundra, steppes, coniferous forests and swamps, but probably avoided deciduous forests due to the large size of its antlers.

Species:

Paleontologist:

Distribution:

Epoch:

Cervalces latifrons

Johnson, 1874

Eurasia

Pleistocene

Length:

Height:

Weight:

3.8 m

2.5 m

1.200 kg

Reference:

Breda, M. (2008). Palaeoecology and palaeoethology of the Plio-Pleistocene genus cervalces (Cervidae, Mammalia) in Eurasia. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 28(3), 886-899.