The largest monkey which has been recorded had a height of almost 3 meters and weighed almost twice as much as a gorilla. Why and when the prehistoric giant ape – described as ‘the real King Kong» – is one of the greatest mysteries in paleontology.

German-Dutch paleontologist GHR von Koenigswald first identified him Gigantopithecus blacki about a century ago from large teeth sold as medicinal “dragon bones” in a Hong Kong pharmacy.

About 2,000 fossilized teeth and four jaw bones from the extinct Great Ape species have since been discovered in caves, in soil sediments, in south china.

Now, new research by scientists in Australia and China on many of these rare fossils and the caves where they were found sheds more light on the unknown circumstances surrounding Gigantopithecus’ death.

Artist’s rendering of a family of prehistoric Giant Apes in a forest in southern China

According to research published in the Journal, the scientific authors believe that the huge herbivore apes became extinct 295,000 to 215,000 years ago due to climate change and his difficulty adjusting, reports the CNN report.

Before Gigantopithecus populations declined due to climate change, the species flourished starting about two million years ago in a rich and diverse forest environment, eating mostly fruit, bark and tree branches, said one of the study’s authors, Kira Westaway, professor and geochronologist at Macquarie University, Australia.

The giant monkey did not adapt well to changing environmental conditions and showed chronic stress and reducing its number, until finally disappearedWestaway said.

Although O Gigantopithecus he did not live in caves, his bones and teeth are estimated to have been found in caves, due to rodents carrying them there.