''Makapania'' is an

extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of large caprine or ovibovine from the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

of southern and East

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. It is remarkable in that its horns were positioned laterally. Its body weight is estimated to have been about 263 kg. ''Makapania'' is thought to have been both a browser and a grazer. It probably preferred grasses, and would have required a nearby source of permanent water. ''Makapania broomi'' has been found at

Sterkfontein Sterkfontein (Afrikaans for ''Strong Spring'') is a set of limestone caves of special interest in paleoanthropology located in Gauteng province, about northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa in the Muldersdrift area close to the town of K ...

Members 4 and 5,

Swartkrans Swartkrans or Swartkranz is a fossil-bearing cave designated as a National heritage sites (South Africa), South African National Heritage Site, located about from Johannesburg. It is located in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site and is ...

Members 1-3, Gladysvale, Motsetse and possibly Coopers. It has been recovered from 3-million-year-old sediments in

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

. The type specimen was found at

Makapansgat Makapansgat () (or Makapan Valley World Heritage Site) is an archaeological location within the Makapansgat and Zwartkrans Valleys, northeast of Mokopane in Limpopo province, South Africa. It is an important palaeontological site, with the loca ...

. This species existed from about 3 mya until 1 mya, or perhaps more recently. Remains of an undescribed species of either ''Makapania'' or an unnamed related genus were found in mountain areas of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and dated to just the 6th millennium BCE. The final extinction of this animal could be related to the retreat of dry

grasslands A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur ...

in southern and eastern Africa after the

Last Glacial Maximum The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), also referred to as the Last Glacial Coldest Period, was the most recent time during the Last Glacial Period where ice sheets were at their greatest extent between 26,000 and 20,000 years ago. Ice sheets covered m ...

, which also affected other

megafauna In zoology, megafauna (from Ancient Greek, Greek μέγας ''megas'' "large" and Neo-Latin ''fauna'' "animal life") are large animals. The precise definition of the term varies widely, though a common threshold is approximately , this lower en ...

from this environment like the giant

hartebeest The hartebeest (; ''Alcelaphus buselaphus''), also known as kongoni or kaama, is an Fauna of Africa, African antelope. It is the Monotypic taxon, only member of the genus ''Alcelaphus''. Eight subspecies have been described, including two som ...

'' Megalotragus'', giant

zebra Zebras (, ) (subgenus ''Hippotigris'') are African equines with distinctive black-and-white striped coats. There are three living species: Grévy's zebra (''Equus grevyi''), the plains zebra (''E. quagga''), and the mountain zebra (''E. ...

'' Equus capensis'',

springbok The springbok or springbuck (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is an antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus (biology), genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first Species description, described by the Germa ...

'' Antidorcas bondi'', and bluebuck ''Hippotragus leucophaeus''.Faith, J.T. (2014) Late Pleistocene and Holocene mammal extinctions on continental Africa. ''Earth-Science Reviews'', 128, 105-121.

References

*Gould, S. J. ''The book of life: An illustrated history of the evolution of life on Earth. 2nd edition''. *Hilton-Barber, B. & Berger, L. R. (2004) ''Field guide to the Cradle of Humankind: Sterkfontein, Swartkrans, Kromdraai & Environs World Heritage Site''. Struik Publishers, Cape Town. {{Taxonbar, from=Q6738713 Prehistoric caprids Pleistocene Artiodactyla Pliocene first appearances Pleistocene genus extinctions Pliocene Artiodactyla Pliocene mammals of Africa Pleistocene mammals of Africa Fossil taxa described in 1957 Monotypic prehistoric Artiodactyla genera