One possibility is that they fell victim to starvation due to the oncoming Ice Age. Until very recently it was believed to have occurred between 8,00 to 12,000 years ago, but that was before the most recent remains of the species had been carbon-dated to about 7,700 years ago in western Russia. ![]() There are several theories as to the reason why the Irish elk became extinct. Our best guess is that they preferred the boreal steppe-woodland environments, consisting of scattered spruce and pine, as well as low-lying herbs and shrubs including grasses. With the Irish Elk having roamed all the way from the Atlantic Ocean in the West to Lake Baikal, Siberia, in the East, it has been sometimes wondered why they never ventured northwards onto the open mammoth steppe. Evidence has been discovered that suggests that they ranged throughout Europe, northern Asia and northern Africa, and a related form has been discovered in China too. The Irish elk evolved during the glacial periods of the last million years. But they were not exclusive to Ireland, and in fact, actually roamed of other countries in their day too. They were named the Irish Elk due to the fact that well-preserved fossils of the giant deer are especially common in lake sediments and peat bogs across Ireland. This might sound like a trick question! Obviously, they lived in Ireland. The Irish elk is considered to be cursorial, which means it is adapted for running and stamina, and has often been noted to physically resembled reindeer. He suggested that, like bison, the hump allowed a higher hinging action of the front legs to increase stride length while running. The other theory was proposed by American palaeontologist Dale Guthrie in 1989. Localising fat rather than evenly distributing it may have prevented overheating while running or in a rut during the summer. One of these is that it was used to store fat. There are two proposed theories surrounding the purpose of this hump on the Irish elk’s withers. ![]() These early pictures also show a dark stripe running along their backs, a stripe on either side from shoulder to haunch, a dark collar on the throat and a dark hump between the shoulder blades. ![]() the molarisation of the lower fourth premolarīased on Upper Palaeolithic cave paintings, it is believed that the Irish elk had an overall light colouration.proportionally short front section of the skull.Some other features of the Irish elk skeletons that have allowed them to be recognised include:
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |