The largest of the order Sirenia, Stellar’s Sea Cow was one of the largest mammals that was not a whale to have made it to the modern era. Weighing in at an estimated eight to ten tons and growing to eight to nine metres (26 to 30 ft), this peaceful giant lumbered around the North Pacific Coast to reach as far south as Japan and California.

By the time Europeans arrived in 1741 and the creature was described by Georg Wilhelm Steller, their numbers were isolated to the uninhabited Commander Islands. They fed on kelp and were marked as ‘completely tame’. This gentle nature subjected them to hunting by Attu and other aboriginal people for their meat, skins (which were used for ship building), and their subcutaneous fat which produced both a smokeless oil and a butter substitute. The aboriginal hunt of sea otters, which increased the amount of sea urchins feeding on the Stellar’s Sea Cow’s diet of kelp, likely helped to reduce their numbers to about 1,500 by he time Europeans arrived.

The pressure of these newly arrived sailors and fur traders wiped them out within 20 years of their identification by Westerners.

Extinction Date According to the IUCN Red List: 1768