The Irish Elk (Megaloceros giganteus)

Though it was not exclusive to Late Pleistcene Ireland (nor was it closely related to modern elk), the Irish Elk is a fittingly named beast for a post made on this Saint Patrick's Day. Also called the Giant Deer, the Irish Elk was one of the largest cervids that ever lived: it stood roughly 7 feet tall at the shoulders, though it's most impressive feature was unquestionably it's daunting rack of palmate antlers - the biggest measuring an incredible 12 feet across and weighing a hefty 88lbs. Above photo by Franco Atirador > Below: an illustration by one of my favorite contemporary illustrators, the brilliant James Gurney; a painting by the late, (incredibly) great natural history artist, Charles R. Knight; and one of my own sketches, from a series of Ice Age megafauna commissioned by National Geographic in 2005 (other, finished drawings from that series can be found in my portfolio).