4.8" Brontothere Fossil Knee Bone Eocene Age Badlands S Dakota Titanothere COA

Location: White River Badlands, South Dakota

Weight: 1 Pound 8.6 Ounces

Dimensions: 4.8 Inches Long, 3.3 Inches Wide, 2.4 Inches Thick (Matrix)

Eocene Age, 56 to 33.9 million years Old.

Comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.

The item pictured is the one you will receive. 

Brontothere – The “Thunder Beast” of Badlands National Park

Brontotheres were giant mammals that roamed what is now Badlands National Park between 56 and 33.9 million years ago. Scientifically known as Megacerops coloradensis, these creatures are also called “titanotheres,” meaning “thunder beasts.” This name reflects the imagined sound of a herd of these massive animals thundering across the ancient landscape.

Fossil evidence shows that Badlands brontotheres grew to around 8 feet tall and 16 feet long, comparable to a large rhinoceros or a small elephant today. However, the earliest brontotheres of the early Eocene were only dog-sized. Over 20 million years, they evolved and diversified, eventually reaching the enormous size preserved in late Eocene Badlands fossils.

One of the most striking features of brontotheres is their paired blunt horns that extended from the nose. These horns grew from small nubs into massive structures exceeding 3.3 feet (1 meter) in length, with males typically having larger horns than females. While their appearance may evoke modern rhinos, brontotheres are only distantly related. True rhino ancestors, such as Subhyracodon, are also found in the Badlands fossil record, representing the lineage that led to today’s rhinoceroses.