Giant rhino fossils shed light on the biggest land mammals in history

A newly discovered species of gigantic rhino that used to roam Asia around 25 million years ago was detailed by scientists in a paper published in Nature Thursday.

With a name that just rolls right off the tongue, the newly minted Paraceratherium linxiaense was pieced together from a well-preserved skull and a few vertebrae found in the Gansu province of north-central China, in the Linxia Basin. 

Other, more complete skeletons of members of the Paraceratherium genus revealed that these hornless, giant rhinos stood at about 16 feet tall and 26 feet long, and weighed 22 tons, making them the largest land mammals in history...that we've found. For comparison: The largest elephants that currently walk the Earth are around 13 feet tall and weigh 7 tons. Read more...

More about Fossils, Science, and Animals

from Mashable https://ift.tt/2UmKbJG