Sivatherium
| Sivatherium Temporal range: Late Miocene to Early Pleistocene, | |
|---|---|
| Skeleton of S. giganteum | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Giraffidae |
| Subfamily: | †Sivatheriinae |
| Genus: | †Sivatherium Falconer & Cautley, 1836 |
| Type species | |
| †Sivatherium giganteum Falconer & Cautley, 1836 | |
| Species | |
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
†Libytherium | |
Sivatherium ("Shiva's beast", from Shiva and therium, Latinized form of Ancient Greek θηρίον - thēríon) is an extinct genus of giraffid that ranged throughout Africa and Eurasia. The species Sivatherium giganteum is, by weight, one of the largest giraffids known, and also one of the largest ruminants of all time.
Sivatherium originated during the Late Miocene (around 7 million years ago) in Africa and survived through to the late Early Pleistocene (Calabrian) until around 1 million years ago.