Sivatherium was initially misidentified as an archaic link between modern ruminants and the now obsolete, polyphyletic "pachyderms" (elephants, rhinoceroses, horses and tapirs).

[7] A dental wear analysis of S. hendeyi from the Early Pliocene of South Africa found that the teeth were brachyodont, but had a higher hypsodonty than a giraffe, and that it was best classified as a mixed feeder, being able to both graze and browse.

[8] Analysis of dental microwear and mesowear paired with δ13C and δ18O measurements of S. maurusium from Ahl al Oughlam in western Morocco show it predominantly fed on C3 vegetation.

[9] Remains of Sivatherium from Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, dating to around 1.35 million years ago have been found associated with stone tools and bearing cut marks, indicating butchery by archaic humans, likely Homo erectus.

[10] However, these claims are not substantiated by fossil evidence (which suggest that the genus was extinct long before the emergence of modern humans), and the depictions likely represent other animals.