In fact, the Blue Whale is the largest animal, but it lives in the sea and is not included in this list.
Most of the land mammals on this list are extinct, but some of them are still alive today.
Extinct land mammals still have many descendants, but they are nowhere near their ancestors.
Residence: South America
Period Lived: Early Pliocene to late Pleistocene (5 million to 8,000 years ago)
Scientific Name: A different but well known species is Megatherium americanum
Source: Wikimedia Commons via Ballista
Unlike their modern counterparts, which weighed only 5 kilograms (11 pounds), Megatherium weighed between 3 and 4 meters (6,613.87 and 8,818.49 pounds).
When Megatherium stood on its hind legs it was 3.5 meters (12 feet) long.
There are many species of Megatherium, but the most widely known species is Megatherium americanum, which lived in South America, mainly in Argentina, Uruguay, and Bolivia.
Our ancestors may have eaten Megatherium as scientists have uncovered fossils with cut marks, made by human tools and weapons.
Period Lived: Late Pliocene to early Pleistocene (2.6 million to 39,000 years ago)
Scientific Name: Elasmotherium sibiricum
Source: Wikimedia Commons via DiBgd
Elasmotherium sibiricum is a species of horned rhinoceros known as the “Giant Siberian Unicorn” because of its prominent horn.
Elasmotherium sibiricum is about the same size as the Woolly Mammoth, which is said to have weighed up to 4.5 metric tons (9,920.8 pounds).
Like the Woolly Mammoth, Elasmotherium sibiricum was covered in long hair.
For many years, scientists believed that Elasmotherium sibiricum died out between 100,000 and 200,000 years ago, but a skull discovered in 2016 was estimated to be 29,000 years ago.
This means that Elasmotherium sibiricum lived at the same time as Neanderthals and early humans.
Elasmotherium sibiricum is one of the 250 species of rhinoceros living at the time.
Source: Wikimedia Commons via Vpad236
Asian Elephants are close relatives to the Woolly Mammoth, but not as large.
However, Asian Elephants are still some of the largest mammals in the world, and can weigh between 2.25 and 5.5 meters (4,960.4 and 12,125.4 pounds).
On average, Asian Elephants are 6 to 12 feet (1.8 to 3.8 meters) tall at the shoulder.
Asian Elephants are easy to tame and have been used by humans for thousands of years.
People use Asian elephants to move heavy objects, carry people and cargo, and even fight.
Unlike African Elephants, Asian Elephants have smaller tusks, called tushes.
Only a few Asian Elephants develop large, prominent tusks like their African counterparts.
African Bush Elephant
Habitat: Sub-Saharan Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Angola)
Time spent: currently
Time spent: currently
Source: Wikimedia Commons via Gorgo
The African Bush Elephant is currently the largest land mammal in the world and the larger of the two African Elephant species.
African forest elephants weigh between 4 and 7 meters (8,818.5 and 15,432.4 pounds).
Male African forest elephants can reach 3.5 meters (11.5 feet) in height, while females can reach 3 meters (9.8 feet).
African Bush Elephants live in Sub-Saharan Africa, in Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Angola.
To go along with their large bodies, African Bush Elephants have huge bellies that can reach 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) in length and weigh between 50 to 100 pounds (22.7 to 45.36 kilograms).
Digital Hair
Habitat: northern Asia, many parts of Europe, and northern North America
Source: Wikimedia Commons via Flying Puffin
The famous Woolly Mammoth is the smallest of all known mammoths, but it is still a large animal.
Woolly Mammoths weigh up to 6 meters (13,227.7 pounds) and are 4 meters (13 feet) long.
In ancient times, large Woolly Mammoths roamed the land from northern Asia to the northern reaches of North America.
Although the Woolly Mammoth existed a long time ago, it became extinct around 4,000 years ago.
In recent years, the scientific community has discovered that they may be able to resurrect the Woolly Mammoth from extinction.
Mammoth fur can be up to 1 meter (3 feet) long.
Steppe Mammoth
Period Lived: Pleistocene (600,000 – 370,000 years ago)
Period Lived: Pleistocene (600,000 – 370,000 years ago)
Source: Wikimedia Commons via Altes
The Steppe Mammoth is the largest of the known mammoth species, weighing between 9 and 14.3 meters (19,841.6 and 31,526 pounds).
The Steppe Mammoth was the earliest known mammoth and lived in the colder parts of ancient Eurasia.
Not only was the Steppe Mammoth very heavy, it was also quite tall, standing 4 to 4.5 meters (13.1 to 14.8 feet) tall.
In 2015, scientists found a nearly complete Steppe Mammoth skeleton in Russia.
The Steppe Mammoth is estimated to be over 100,000 years old and was a male who died at about 45 years of age.
Steppe Mammoths are 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) long, and the pair found in 2015 weighed 150 kilograms (330.69 pounds).
Habitat: Plains of Eurasia
Period Lived: Oligocene (35 – 20 million years ago)
Scientific Name: Paraceratherium transouralicum
Source: Wikimedia Commons via ABelov2014
Indricotherium or Paraceratherium is an extinct species of hornless rhinoceros, believed to be the largest living land mammal.
Living on the plains of Eurasia between 20 and 35 million years ago, Indricotherium is estimated to have weighed between 15 and 20 meters (33,000 to 44,000 lbs).
In addition to being extremely heavy, Indricotherium was also very tall, reaching 40 feet (12.2 meters) in length.
Unlike modern rhinos, Indricotherium had a long neck and thin legs.
When Indricotherium fossils were first discovered, paleontologists believed they were enormous, weighing up to 60,000 pounds (27.2 metric tons).
However, most scientists agree that Indricotherium could not have weighed more than 44,000 pounds (20 metric tons).