Bubalus murrensis


Bubalus murrensis, the European water buffalo, is an extinct bovine that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene. Its closest living relatives are the wild water buffalo ', the tamaraw ', the lowland anoa ', the mountain anoa ' and the domestic water buffalo .

Description

The morphology of Bubalus murrensis is very similar to other Bubalus species like the Wild Asian water buffalo . Only the skull differs from other bovines, especially the triangular horns. A skull found in Rhineland-Palatinate had a width of 107 cm.

Distribution and habitat

The European water buffalo occurred in river valleys. Remains are very rare. The majority of finds have come from along the Rhine, Elbe and Murr in Germany and the Netherlands. Isolated specimens have also been found between the Atlantic coast of France in the west and the central part of the East European Plain in the east. It lived in muddy and swampy terrain. Bubalus murrensis could not tolerate long-lasting episodes of frost and was therefore absent in Central Europe during the Glacial Periods. During the Interglacial Periods like the Eemian it occurred together with other species of the Interglacial faunal assemblage, including the straight-tusked elephant, Merck's rhinoceros, fallow deer, aurochs and the European hippopotamus.