Largest mammoth

Extinct elephants of the mammoth lineage attained truly gigantic sizes that dwarfed the biggest modern elephants. The largest mammoth species were the southern mammoth (Mammuthus meridionalis), which roamed across temperate parts of northern Eurasia around 2 million years ago, and its descendant, the steppe mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii) originating in northern China some 1.6 million years ago before dispersing to other parts of Eurasia. The largest documented specimen of the latter had an estimated shoulder height of 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in) and weighed over 14 tonnes (15.4 tons).

In 1940, a highly complete southern mammoth skeleton was excavated in Nogaysk on the northern coast of the Sea of Azov (now Prymorsk, Ukraine). Dated around 1.2 million years in age, the Nogaysk mammoth skeleton sports a shoulder height of 3.85 m (12 ft 7.6 in). The shape of the pelvis, and presence of wisdom teeth in the mammoth’s jaw suggest a full-grown bull mammoth in its prime years, weighing 10.4 tonnes (11.5 tons).

The pelvis of another southern mammoth bull from Tuscany, Italy, measures 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) wide, indicating an animal that weighed around 11 tonnes (12.1 tons). For reference, full-grown individuals of the African savannah elephant, today’s largest land animal, typically attain shoulder height no greater than 3.2 m (10 ft 6 in), and such individuals may achieve 5–6 tonnes (5.5–6.6 tons) in weight under optimal nutritional conditions. The two reliably record-sized African elephant bulls were both shot in Angola, with shoulder heights of 3.96 m (12 ft 11.9 in) and 3.5 m (11 ft 5.8 in) respectively.

A gigantic left humerus of a steppe mammoth found in Mosbach, Germany, dating around 700,000–500,000 years old is over 1.4 m (4 ft 7 in) long, indicating a colossus with a shoulder height of 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in) and weighed over 14 tonnes (15.4 tons). This makes the Mosbach mammoth the largest single mammoth find based on reliable identification, measurements and calculations.

More complete finds of steppe mammoth skeletons from southern Russia reveal similar dimensions to large specimens of southern mammoths, with shoulder height around 4 m (13 ft 1.5 in) and weighing about 11.5 tonnes (12.7 tons). The celebrated West Runton Mammoth skeleton from Norfolk, UK, belongs to a steppe mammoth of similar antiquity to the Mosbach specimen. From measurements, the West Runton Mammoth’s shoulder height is reconstructed at 3.83 m (12 ft 6.8 in), weighing in at 10.3 tonnes (11.4 tons).