Explore this animal in Size of Extinct Animals ↗
548 / Cenozoic
Aphelops
Aphelops mutilus
A hornless, long-limbed rhinoceros was built for travel across open woodland.
View original image · 1600 × 1067- Time range
- About 16–5 million years ago
- Final stage
- Miocene to early Pliocene
- Geographic range
- Woodland edge and grassland · North America
01 / DEFINITION & ECOLOGY
What was Aphelops?
Aphelops (Aphelops mutilus) was an extinct organism known from About 16–5 million years ago, with a range in Woodland edge and grassland · North America.
Life and ecology
It browsed shrubs with low-crowned teeth and may have moved seasonally between water sources.
02 / DISAPPEARANCE
Why did Aphelops disappear?
Pliocene drying, grassland expansion and rhinoceros turnover are possible context; their precise role in its disappearance is not established.
03 / EVIDENCE
How do scientists know about Aphelops?
Numerous skulls, teeth and limbs document form and wear; soft anatomy follows relatives.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Rewrote an extinction cause that presented environmental or faunal turnover as established; it is now given as context the record does not prove.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS