Irish elk (Megaloceros giganteus). Illustration and photo-reconstruction of the large-antler deer Megaloceros walking along the river in high grass. The Irish elk possessed one of the most complex and spectacular horns amongst deer, reaching a span of 3.7 meters. It is noteworthy that each year these horns were shed. The appearance of the first megacerine was observed about 1.4 million years ago, and bone remains from the Early Pleistocene were found in the British Isles, Germany, and Eastern Europe (Moldova and Ukraine). The Irish elk became extinct about 11,000 years ago, much later than other representatives of the mammoth fauna. The last refuge of the Megaloceros was the forest-steppe of the Southern and Middle Urals.