Some people don't want dinos and want me to talk about Monkee...

well let's talk about one

Gigantopithecus, possibly the largest primate ever to exist

Gigantopithecus is known from isolated teeth and 4 jaws.

Even from this, an idea can be made of this animal

it was a herbivore, the thick enamel on its teeth show its diet was made out of fibrous and tough plant material, it also fed on roots and tubers.

Its closest living relative is the orangutan, a DNA study in 2019 showed that both shared a common ancestor more than 12 million years ago.

The lack of fossils means that most estimations of size and weigth are based on the proportions of Orangutans.

Here are the two recognized species of Giganthopithecus next to a human.

The most common and often used estimation is that they were twice the size of modern Gorillas.

Reconstructions depict it in a gorilla-like posture and the red hair from its Oragutan relatives.

Like other apes, it was likely social and lived in small groups like Gorillas.

Altough only from teeth its hard to know

Gigantopithecus inhabited the forests of China from 2 million years till 300.000 years ago.

In that time it shared its world with various other animals.

Early Stage fauna, 2.6–1.8 million years ago

This was made from primitive animals.

The elephant Sinomastodon, Chalicotheres and the pig Hippopotamodon

Mouse deer and the extinct cervid genus Cervavitus were present around this time.

Middle stage,1.8–1.2 million years ago

Marks the appearence of new animals.

Tha ancestor of the Panda, Ailuropoda wulingshanensis, the Dhole and Tapir

The Late Stage, 1.2–0.8 million years ago features Ailuropoda baconi, a relatively unknown relative of the Panda, and the elephant Stegodon

Primates found include Orangutans and Macaques

Cevirds like the Muntjac and Cervus deer were also present

Bovines:

the extinct cow Leptobos and the Gaur

Predators included the now extinct Sabertooth cat Megantereon and the hyena Pachycrocuta.

Tigers were present during the Pleistocene and competed with this animals.

Gigantopithecus would go extinct due to climate change.

It survived enough till the arrival of Homo Erectus to Asia, it is unknown if they had a hand in their extinction.