Aurochs Size

The aurochs is an extinct type of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia and North Africa. It is the ancestor of domestic cattle but it was somewhat bigger. The species survived in Europe until the last recorded aurochs died in the Jaktorów Forest, Poland in 1627.

The aurochs was one of the largest herbivores in postglacial Europe, comparable to the wisent, the European bison. The size of an aurochs appears to have varied by region. In Europe, northern populations were bigger on average than those from the south. For example, aurochs from Denmark and Germany had an average height at the shoulders of 155–180 cm (61–71 in) in bulls and 135–155 cm (53–61 in) in cows, while aurochs populations in Hungary had bulls reaching 155–160 cm (61–63 in). The body mass of aurochs appears to have shown some variability. Some individuals were comparable in weight to the wisent and the banteng, reaching around 700 kg, whereas those from the late-middle Pleistocene are estimated to have weighed up to 1,500 kg as much as the largest gaur (the largest extant bovid).

Fossils have been found in Europe,India/Asia,Middle east and North Africa.