Ouranopithecus turkae

Ouranopithecus turkae is an extinct great ape from the Late Miocene of Turkey. It is known only from three cranial fossils found at a locality in central Anatolia, and the animal remains found with them date to about 8.7 to 7.4 million years ago, which makes it one of the youngest Eurasian great apes known. The species name acknowledges the Republic of Turkey, where the holotype was found, and its probable sister taxon is Ouranopithecus macedoniensis from Greece. A 2023 study by Sevim-Erol and colleagues described the same material under a new genus name, Anadoluvius turkae. No post-cranial bones are known, so its body is hard to reconstruct, but the cheek teeth are second in size only to those of Gigantopithecus among the apes, which may point to a large body. Associated fauna suggest an open woodland or open savannah setting, and tooth wear points to a diet of tough, abrasive food.