Palaeontology

Prehistoric 'unicorn' lived alongside humans

By T.K. Randall
March 24, 2016 ·  17 comments

The enormous creature was actually a type of rhinoceros. Image Credit: PD - Heinrich Harder Originally thought to have died out 350,000 years ago, Elasmotherium sibiricum would have been a sight to behold - a horned behemoth standing 6ft tall and measuring up to 15ft in length.

Now scientists have found new evidence to suggest that this unicorn-like creature may have actually survived until as recently as 26,000 years ago, meaning that it would have lived alongside modern humans for many thousands of years.

The discovery was made after fossil fragments were unearthed in Kazakhstan where an isolated population was thought to have survived long after the species had gone extinct everywhere else.Many researchers believe that early findings of fossil Elasmotherium's may have been the origin of the mythical unicorn - a theory seemingly backed up by early palaeontologists who had heard stories from the Tatars of Siberia about a unicorn with a horn so large that it needed a sledge to move it.

Whether the legends really did originate with these remarkable beasts however remains unclear, but what is known is that these were very real creatures and that, as the global climate changed, they were driven in to smaller and smaller areas until they eventually disappeared entirely.

"Understanding of the past allows us to make more accurate predictions about natural processes in the near future," said Dr Andrei Shpanski. "It also concerns climate change."

Source: Mail Online | Comments (17)

Tags: Unicorn