List of largest mammals

Tenrecs and allies (Afrosoricida)

• The largest of these insectivorous mammals is the giant otter shrew, native to Central Africa. This species can weigh up to and measure in total length.

  Even-toed ungulates (Artiodactyla)

• The largest species in terms of weight is the hippopotamus, native to the rivers of sub-Saharan Africa. They can attain a size of, long and tall. Prehistoric hippos such as H. gorgops and H. antiquus rivaled or exceeded the modern species as the largest members of the family and order to ever exist.
• The longest-bodied species, and tallest of all living land animals, is the giraffe, measuring up to tall to the top of the head, and despite being relatively slender, reaching a top weight of.
• The largest extant representative of the bovids, a diverse and well-known family, is the Asian forest-dwelling gaur, in which bulls can weigh up to, in total length and stand at the shoulder. The wild yak, reaching 2.2m in height is comparable to the gaur except for body weight of. The living American bison of North America long, the tail adding. Shoulder heights in the species can range from. Weights can range from. The European bison may be less heavy than the American species, but would exceed heights at withers with the tallest record of. When raised in captivity and farmed for meat, the bisons can grow unnaturally heavy and the largest semidomestic American bison weighed and the heaviest European bison weighed about. The heads and forequarters of American species are massive, and both sexes have short, curved horns that can grow up to long, which they use in fighting for status within the herd and for defense. Wild water buffalo of Asia are larger and heavier than domestic buffalo, and weigh from. Their head-to-body-length is with a tail long, and a shoulder height of. Both sexes carry horns that are heavy at the base and widely spreading up to The extinct giant bison may be the largest bovid in the fossil record, with an estimated shoulder up to and a weight over. Pelorovis also reached 2,000kg in weight. Domestic cattle are usually smaller, although obese steers have been reported to weigh up to. The largest antelope is the giant eland from Africa They are typically between in head-and-body length and stand approximately at the shoulder and weigh.
• The largest species in the pig family is generally the giant forest hog, a native of the African rainforests, at up to, in length and high at the shoulder. Although wild boars have reportedly reached historically, especially the Manchurian subspecies and obese domestic pigs which have been weighed at. The largest wild suid to ever exist was Kubanochoerus gigas, having measured up to and stood more than tall at the shoulder.
• The largest living cervid is the moose, particularly the Alaskan subspecies, verified at up to, a total length of and a shoulder height of. The largest deer of all time was the broad-fronted moose. The extinct Irish elk and the stag-moose were of similar size to the Alaskan moose. However, the Irish elk could have antlers spanning up to across, about twice the maximum span for a moose's antlers.
• The largest members of the camel family are either the bactrian camel, which is still wild in the steppe of central Asia, or the similarly sized dromedary, which no longer exists as a purely wild species but is widespread in the Middle East as a domestic animal, with a large introduced feral population in Australia. Both camels can weigh up to, in total length, tall at the shoulder and a height of at the hump. Several giant camels are known from fossils, the previous record holders, Gigantocamelus and Titanotylopus from North America, both possibly reached and a shoulder height of over. Camelus moreli, also known as the "Syrian camel", may have been even larger, at an estimated shoulder height of 3.6 or even 4 m.

Carnivorans (Carnivora)

• The largest carnivoran as well as the largest pinniped is the southern elephant seal, attaining sizes up to 5,000 kg in weight and 6.9 m in length.
• The largest living land carnivoran, on average, is the polar bear. It can reach a shoulder height of over and total length of as much as. The heaviest wild polar bear weight recorded was. The Kodiak bear, a brown bear subspecies, rivals the polar bear in size, but is slightly smaller. It has a similar body length with the largest confirmed wild specimen weighing. The largest bear, and possibly the largest known mammalian land carnivore of all time, was Arctotherium angustidens. The largest specimen yet found is estimated to weigh up to and stood up to tall on the hind-limbs
• The largest living species of the family Felidae is the tiger, with reports of males up to in the wilderness and captivity, respectively. Captive ligers can grow up to non-obese weights over. Among the largest members of the family Felidae were the extinct American lion, averaging, the sabertooth Smilodon populator, of which the largest males might have exceeded, and sabertooths of genus Amphimachairodus. The largest specimens from the Mackenzie Valley wolf or the Eurasian wolf weigh up to and measure up to in total length and tall at the shoulder. Eurasian wolves from the Russian area have even been reported to weigh as much as, though these figures require verification. Domestic dogs however can occasionally grow heavier, up to. The largest known canid is an extinct member of subfamilly Borophaginae, Epicyon haydeni. The largest known specimen of this species weighed an estimated.
• The largest and most diverse family of carnivores, the mustelids, reaches their maximum size in the sea otter of the North Pacific coasts, at up to, and the giant otter of the Amazonian rainforests, at up to in total. The largest mustelid to ever exist was likely the odd cat-like Ekorus from Africa, about the size of a leopard and filling a similar ecological niche before big cats came to the continent. Another contender for largest of this family is the wolverine-like Megalictis, which according to older estimates could have reached the size of a black bear. Newer estimates, however, significantly downgrade its size, although, at a maximum weight more than twice that of a wolverine, it is larger than most living mustelids.
• The largest species in the mongoose family is the African white-tailed mongoose, at up to and long.
• The largest species in the viverrid family is the Asian binturong, at up to and long, about half of which is tail. The largest viverrid known to have existed is Viverra leakeyi, which was around the size of a wolf or small leopard at.
• The largest modern species in the hyena family is the spotted hyena of sub-Saharan Africa, at up to a maximum weight of. Spotted hyenas can range up to in total length and tall at the shoulder. The largest fossil hyena is the lion-sized Pachycrocuta, estimated at.
• The largest living procyonid is the raccoon of North American, having a body length of and a body weight of. The extinct Chapalmalania of South America was the largest known member of this family, about in body length.
• The largest skunk is generally considered the striped skunk, which can weigh up to and reaches lengths of up to. The American hog-nosed skunk is longer, reaching lengths of up to, but is usually less heavy, at up to.

  Whales (Cetacea)

• The largest whale is the blue whale, a baleen whale. The longest confirmed specimen was 33.58 m in length and the heaviest was 190 tonnes. Its closest competitors are also baleen whales, the fin whale, which can reach a size of in length and weight of 109 tonnes, and the bowhead and North Pacific right whale, both measured up to and estimated at that length to weigh about 133 tonnes.
• The largest toothed whale is the sperm whale, bulls of which usually range up to long and a mass of 50 tonnes.

• The killer whale or orca is the largest species of the oceanic dolphin family. The largest killer whale ever recorded was a male off the coast of Japan, measuring long and weighed 10 tonnes.
• The largest porpoise is the Dall's porpoise, at up to and in length.
• The largest beaked whale is the Baird's beaked whale at up to 14 tonnes and long.
• The largest beluga and narwhals is the beluga whale Adult male beluga whales can range from, while the females measure.
• The largest river dolphin is the Amazon river dolphin from Amazon basin , depending on subspecies. Females are typically larger than males. The largest female Amazon river dolphins can range up to
• Fragmentary fossils of extinct rorquals from the Pliocene epoch suggest they rivaled the size of the largest whales today.

  Bats (Chiroptera)

• The large flying fox is generally reported as the largest bat. Its wingspan has been verified to and may possibly reach. In weight it is surpassed by the closely related Indian flying fox, which is the heaviest bat at up to. A few other relatively poorly known species of flying foxes may match these, but few measurements are available.
• The spectral bat of the Neotropics, at up to, long and about in wingspan, is the largest member of the family Phyllostomidae and is also believed to be the largest member of the microbat suborder.
• The great evening bat, at long with an average wingspan of and a weight of, is the largest vesper bat.

  Armadillos (Cingulata)

• The extant giant of this group is the giant armadillo, native to tropical South America. The top size for this species is, high at the shoulder and in length, although captive specimens can weigh up to.
• Much larger prehistoric examples are known, especially Glyptodon of the Americas, which probably averaged around 2 tonnes and could reach in total length and high at the top of the shelled back.

  Colugos (Dermoptera)

• Of the two colugo species in the order Dermoptera of gliding arboreal mammals in southeast Asia, the largest and most common is the Sunda flying lemur. The maximum size is and in length.

  Hedgehogs and gymnures (Erinaceomorpha)

• The largest of this order and family of prickly-skinned, small mammals is the greater moonrat, native to the rainforests of the Malaysian Peninsula as well as Sumatra and Borneo. The maximum size of this species is over and. The moonrat is a member of the same family as hedgehogs, which are typically much smaller than the moonrat. Even larger was the giant gymnure Deinogalerix from Miocene Europe. It was estimated to grow larger than a house cat.

  Hyraxes (Hyracoidea)

• The largest species of hyrax seems to be the rock hyrax, at up to and long. Prehistorically, the hyraxes were, for a time, the primary terrestrial herbivores in Africa, and some forms grew as large as horses.

  Rabbits, hares, and pikas (Lagomorpha)

• The largest extant wild species may be the European hare, native to western and central Eurasia. This lagomorph can range up to in weight and in total length. However, the Alaskan hare has almost the same exact body-proportions and weighs slightly more, averaging and reaching a maximum mass of. Also, an occasional Arctic hare can also weigh as much as but is typically smaller overall than the European and Alaskan species. The largest domestic rabbit breed is the Flemish Giant, which can attain a maximum known weight of. The largest lagomorph ever was Nuralagus rex, native to Menorca, which could have possibly grown up to.

  Elephant shrews (Macroscelidea)

• The elephant shrews are named for their combination of long, trunk-like snouts and long legs combined with a general shrew-like body form, but these animals are in fact not closely related to any other extant order and are a unique group behaviorally and in appearance. The largest species is the recently discovered grey-faced sengi, known only from the Udzungwa Mountains of Tanzania and Kenya. This elephant shrew can range up to and a length of.

  Marsupials (Marsupialia)

• The largest opossum is the Virginia opossum from North America. Virginia opossums can vary considerably in size, with larger specimens found to the north of the opossum's range and smaller specimens in the tropics. They measure 13-37 inches long from their snout to the base of the tail, with the tail adding another 8.5-19 inches. Weight for males ranges from 1.7 to 14 pounds and for females from 11 ounces to 8.2 pounds.
• The largest possum is the common brushtail possum from Australia 32–58 cm with a tail length of 24–40 cm. It weighs 1.2-4.5 kg. Males are generally larger than females.
• The red kangaroo of Australia is the largest living marsupial, and the largest member of the kangaroo family. These lanky mammals has been verified to and when standing completely upright. Unconfirmed specimens have been reported up to. Prehistoric kangaroos reached even larger sizes. Procoptodon goliah was one of the largest known kangaroos that ever existed, standing approximately and weighing about. Some species from the genus Sthenurus were similar in size as well.
• The northern hairy-nosed wombat is the largest vombatiform alive today with a head and body length up to and a weight of up to. Prehistorically, this suborder contained many huge marsupials, including the largest to ever exist: Diprotodon. This rhino-sized herbivore would have reached more than in length and stood at shoulder and was estimated to weigh up to.
• The Tasmanian devil, endemic to Tasmania, is the largest living marsupial carnivore. These stocky mammals can range up to and in total length. The recently extinct thylacine, a close relative of the devil, grew larger and was the largest member of the group to survive into modern times. The largest measured specimen was from nose to tail.
• The largest carnivorous marsupials known to ever exist were the Australian marsupial lion and the South American saber-toothed marsupial both ranging from long and weighing between. Neither were closely related to the true marsupial carnivores of today. Rather, the marsupial lion was most closely related to the herbivorous koalas, while Thylacosmilus was a member of the order Sparassodonta, a group which may not have even been true marsupials.

  Monotreme mammals (Monotremata)

Odd-toed ungulates (Perissodactyla)

• The largest extant species is the white rhinoceros. The largest size this species can attain is, in total length, and tall at the shoulder. It is slightly larger than the Indian rhinoceros, which can range up to a weight of. The extinct Elasmotherium sibricum was the largest rhino to ever exist. It stood approximately tall at the shoulder, up to long, and weighed from.
• The largest extant wild equids are the Grevy's zebra, at up to, a shoulder height of and total length of. Until it was domesticated into extinction the wild horse was the largest equid. Domestic horses can reach a maximum weight of and shoulder height of, probably far greater than the sizes attained by the wild horse. The largest prehistoric horse was Equus giganteus of North America. It was estimated to grow around the same size as the aforementioned domestic horse.
• The largest of the tapirs is the Malayan tapir, the only member of the family outside of South America. Maximum size is about in length, tall at the shoulder, and up to in weight.
• The second largest land mammal ever was Paraceratherium or Indricotherium, a member of this order. The largest known species is believed to have stood up to tall, measured over long and may have weighed about 17 tonnes.

  Pangolins (Pholidota)

• The largest species of scaly anteater is the giant pangolin, at up to and at least.

  Anteaters and sloths (Pilosa)

• The largest species is the giant anteater. A large adult can weigh as much as, be over tall at the shoulder and measure in overall length.

• The largest living sloths are the Linnaeus's two-toed sloth and Hoffmann's two-toed sloths, which both can range up to and long.
• The sloths attained much larger sizes prehistorically, the largest of which were Megatherium which, at an estimated average weight of 4.5 tonnes and standing height of, was about the same size as the African bush elephant

  Primates (Primates)

• The gorillas are the most massive living primates. The largest race is eastern lowland gorilla, with males average, tall at the shoulder while on all fours and tall when standing. The tallest wild gorilla stood and the heaviest wild one massed, although heavier weights have been observed in captivity. The great ape Gigantopithecus, which lived in Asia between 1 million and 100,000 years ago, is the largest primate known to have existed. It was estimated to stand tall and to weigh up to. However this is disputed and could only have half of that weight.
• The largest of the Old World monkeys is the mandrill with large males being up to, long and at the shoulders. The prehistoric baboon Dinopithecus grew even larger than modern mandrills, weighing as much as a grown man.
• The largest New World monkey is the southern muriqui, up to and in total length.
• The largest lemur is the indri which can weigh up to and in total length, though one fossil lemur, Archaeoindris, was gorilla-sized at.
• Humans can attain weights of up to as well as heights of up to, although these are cases of morbid obesity, tumor, gigantism or other medical malady. However, even when not afflicted with gigantism, humans are the tallest living primates. The biggest man without growth abnormalities was an incredible tall and weighed at least.

  Elephants, mammoths, and mastodons (Proboscidea)

• The African bush elephant, with a largest recorded weight of 10.4 tonnes, is the largest extant member of the order Proboscidea. Though various contenders vie for the title of largest proboscid ever, including the steppe mammoth of Asia and Elephas recki of Africa, the largest was Palaeoloxodon namadicus. A recent estimate puts the largest individuals at a shoulder height of and a weight of about 22 tonnes. This would make it the largest land mammal known to ever exist, surpassing even Paraceratherium/Indricotherium.
• Deinotherium "thraceiensis", at tall and a weight of, rivaled those proboscideans in size, and was the largest member of its family.

  Rodents (Rodentia)

• The largest living rodent is the capybara, native to most of the tropical and temperate parts of South America east of the Andes, always near water. Full-grown capybaras can reach long and tall at the shoulder and a maximum weight of. the extinct Neochoerus pinckneyi from North America At 90 to 113 kg, 40% larger than the living capybara,
• The second largest living rodent is the North American beaver, which favors water perhaps even more than its larger cousin. Outsized male beaver specimens have been recorded up to, which is about twice the normal weight for a beaver, and in total length. The Eurasian beaver is close to the same average size, but is known to top out around a mass of. The largest of this family is the extinct giant beaver of North America. It grew over in length and weighed roughly, also making it one of the largest rodents to ever exist.
• The largest species in the squirrel family is the hoary marmot of the Pacific Northwest, at up to and long.
• The largest porcupine is the Cape porcupine of Central Africa long from the head to the base of the tail, with the tail adding a further. They weigh from, with exceptionally large specimens weighing up to ; males and females are not significantly different in size.
• The largest hutia are Desmarest's Hutia of Cuba, a tail that is long, and weigh. The largest extinct Blunt-toothed giant hutia to have weighed between 50 and 200 kg.
• The largest Muroid is the Gambian pouched rat of Africa. It grows up to in total length and can weigh up to.
• The largest known rodent ever is Josephoartigasia monesi, an extinct species known only from fossils found in Uruguay. It was approximately long and tall, and is estimated to have weighed 1.5–2.5 tonnes. Prior to the description of J. monesi, the largest known rodent species were from the genus Phoberomys, of which two species have been discovered. An almost complete skeleton of the slightly smaller Late Miocene species, Phoberomys pattersoni, was discovered in Venezuela in 2000; it was approximately long, with an additional tail, and probably weighed around.

  Tree shrews (Scandentia)

• The largest of the tree shrews seems to be the common treeshrew, at up to 187 g and.

  Dugongs and manatees (Sirenia)

• The largest living species in the order Sirenia of dugongs and manatees is the West Indian manatee. The largest manatees are found in the Florida subspecies. The maximum recorded size of this species was and a total length of.
• The extinct Steller's sea cow was the largest member to ever exist, growing up to at least long and weighing up to 11 tonnes. It was a member of the dugong family.

  Shrews and moles (Soricomorpha)

• The largest species of this order is the Hispaniolan solenodon, males of which can weigh up to 1 kg and reach lengths of.
• The largest species of shrew, typically among the smallest-bodied of mammals, is the Asian house shrew, weighing up to and reach lengths of up to.
• The largest mole is the amphibious Russian desman, with a total length of up to and an upper weight of.

  Aardvark (Tubulidentata)

• The only species in this order is the unique aardvark of sub-Saharan Africa. Aardvarks are typically up to in length with an average weight of up to and a shoulder height up to. However, individuals as large as and as heavy as are recorded.

  Other mammals

• An ancient relative of ungulates, Andrewsarchus, may have been the largest carnivorous land mammal ever, despite almost all living species being herbivorous. Known only from a skull found in Mongolia, about twice the length of a brown bear skull, this great beast has been estimated to range as high in size as at the shoulder and in length. Weight estimates range anywhere from based on the unknown proportion of the skull's size relative to the body size.
• The largest member of the extinct order Cimolesta was probably Coryphodon, which was about at shoulder height and in body length and may have weighed up to in the largest species.
• The largest member of the extinct order Dinocerata was Eobasileus. It was about long and stood tall at the shoulder, with a weight up to 4000 kg.
• The largest "creodont" was either Megistotherium or Sarkastodon. Both have had estimated weights of around, though more recent studies suggest they were more likely closer to. Both were among the largest predatory mammals of all time.
• The largest member of the extinct Notoungulata, and the superorder Meridiungulata, was Toxodon. It was about in body length, with an estimated weight up to.
• Taeniolabis taoensis is the largest non-therian mammal known, at a weight possibly exceeding 100 kg.