Meet the Megatherium

One of the biggest land mammals that ever existed, the giant ground sloth roamed the Earth for millions of years

Towering over the Cenozoic flora of South America, a sloth the size of an elephant stomps across the wilderness. Megatherium – or the giant ground sloth – was one of many megafauna species to roam prehistoric Earth and could grow to around six metres in length from head to tail. Unrecognisable from their modern-day relatives, these ground sloths only had to stand on their hind legs to reach the treetops.

The Megatherium’s elongated claws led biologists to once believe that these giants not only feasted on leafy greens but also the flesh of other animals. However, after analysing the collagen in their fossil remains, it was revealed that these mighty mammals were in fact herbivores and most likely used their long curved claws to grasp onto vegetation.

It wasn’t until the Isthmus of Panama (a narrow strip of land formed by the growth of volcanic islands and tectonic activity) bridged the gap between North and South America – separating the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in the process – approximately 3 million years ago that the Megatherium and other South American megafauna could migrate north.

It’s estimated that giant sloths evolved during the Eocene and existed for nearly 35 million years before facing extinction at the end of the last ice age around 11,700 years ago. Many large mammal species started to go extinct at around this time, including woolly mammoths, sabre-toothed cats and dire wolves . The prevailing theory is that the megafauna extinction was the combined result of climate change and human hunting.