Giant deer Megaloceros giganteus Blumenbach, 1799 (Cervidae, Mammalia) from Palaeolithic of Eastern Europe

Healed antler fracture from a giant deer (Megaloceros giganteus) from the Pleistocene in Poland

“…For example, the observed antler deformity was described without the use of any method such as radiography. For the same reason, a revision of the measurements of the skull using modern methods was made by one of us (KP) and has been described by Croitor et al (2014), with the conclusion that the skull morphometry corresponds to that of larger specimens from Ireland according to Lister (1994).…”

On the presence of Late Pleistocene wapiti, Cervus canadensis Erxleben, 1777 (Cervidae, Mammalia) in the Palaeolithic site Climăuți II (Moldova)

“…7). Indeed, the metapodials from Kent's Cavern perfectly correspond to metapodial measurements of the robust short-limbed form of giant deer (Lister, 1994;Croitor et al, 2014). The radius- ulna Nr.…”

Systematical position and paleoecology of the endemic deer Megaceroides algericus Lydekker, 1890 (Cervidae, Mammalia) from the late Pleistocene-early Holocene of North Africa

“…According to Shikama and Tsugawa (1962), a certain degree of pachyostosis is recorded also in Sinomegaceros yabei. Three mandible specimens of S. yabei, two of which certainly belong to a male, are characterized by a rather moderate degree of pachyostosis similar to the specimens of M. giganteus tentatively ascribed to females by Lister (1994) and Croitor et al (2014). Lister (1994) supposed that pachyostosis represents an adaptation that enhanced the skeletal calcium store, related to the large size of antlers.…”

“…However, the relatively large orbits may be a secondary effect caused by the shortened splanchnocranium. It seems that proportions of the lower tooth series in Megaceroides (PP/MM -45.0%, 52.9%, 60.5%: Croitor, 2014) tend to be more advanced than in Megaloceros giganteus from Ireland (PP/MM -53.6-61.1%, based on the sample stored in NHML), and significantly more advanced (according to evolutionary trends in Cervidae described by Vislobokova, 1990) than in the primitive form of Megaloceros giganteus from Bisnik, Poland (PP/MM -61.9-65.6%: Croitor et al, 2014). The presented here analysis of cranial characters of various Eurasian cervids confirms the old assumption of Joleaud (1914) on intermediary morphological and systematic position of Megaceroides between Megaloceros and Dama.…”