Straight-tusked elephant
Extinct species of elephant / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The straight-tusked elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus) is an extinct species of elephant that inhabited Europe and Western Asia during the Middle and Late Pleistocene (781,000–30,000 years Before Present). It was larger than any living elephant, with adult males suggested to reach 3.81–4.2 metres (12.5–13.8 ft) in shoulder height, and 11.3–15 tonnes (12.5–16.5 short tons) in weight. Like modern elephants, the straight-tusked elephant lived in herds, flourishing during interglacial periods, when its range would extend as far north as Great Britain. Skeletons found in association with stone tools and wooden spears suggest they were scavenged and hunted by early humans, including Neanderthals. It is the ancestral species of most dwarf elephants that inhabited islands in the Mediterranean.
Straight-tusked elephant | |
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Skeleton in Rome | |
Skull in Germany | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Proboscidea |
Family: | Elephantidae |
Genus: | †Palaeoloxodon |
Species: | †P. antiquus |
Binomial name | |
†Palaeoloxodon antiquus | |
Approximate range of P. antiquus | |
Synonyms | |
Elephas antiquus (Falconer & Cautley, 1847)
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