Head to head: the case for fighting behaviour inMegaloceros giganteususing finite-element analysis

The largest antlers of any known deer species belonged to the extinct giant deer Megaloceros giganteus. It has been argued that their antlers were too large for use in fighting, instead being used only in ritualized displays to attract mates. Here, we used finite-element analysis to test whether the antlers of M. giganteus could have withstood forces generated during fighting. We compared the mechanical performance of antlers in M. giganteus...