Choerolophodontidae
Choerolophodontidae is an extinct family of large herbivorous mammals that were closely related to elephants. Two genera are known, ''Afrochoerodon'' and ''Choerolophodon''. Taxonomy Although usually classified as part of Gomphotheriidae, recent cladistic analysis recovers choerolophodont gomphotheres as basal to trilophodont gomphotheres and therefore a distinct family. Distribution Fossils of choerolophodontids have been found in Africa, China, Anatolia, and the Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who .... References Elephantida Prehistoric mammal families Miocene first appearances Miocene extinctions Fossils of Serbia {{paleo-proboscidean-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Choerolophodon
''Choerolophodon'' is an extinct genus of proboscidean that lived during the Miocene of Eurasia and Africa. Fossils of ''Choerolophodon'' have been found in Africa, Southeast Europe, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, the Indian subcontinent, and China. ''Choerolophodon'' has a single pair of tusks growing from the upper jaw, which are long and strongly curved. Taxonomy Numerous species of ''Choerolophodon'' are known: ''C. pentelicus'', ''C. anatolicus'' and ''C. chioticus'' from Southeast Europe (Turkey (Yamula Dam in Kayseri), Greece, Bulgaria) and the Middle East, ''C. palaeindicus'' and ''C. corrugatus'' from the Indian subcontinent, ''C. guangheensis'' from China, and ''C. ngorora'' and ''C. zaltaniensis'' from Africa. The name ''Choerolophodon'' was erected for ''"Mastodon" pentelicus'' from Greece by Schlesinger (1917) based on the discovery of new material from the ''pentelicus'' type locality. Cultural significance Possible influence on Greek myths ''Choerolophodon'' is among t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Choerolophodontidae
Choerolophodontidae is an extinct family of large herbivorous mammals that were closely related to elephants. Two genera are known, ''Afrochoerodon'' and ''Choerolophodon''. Taxonomy Although usually classified as part of Gomphotheriidae, recent cladistic analysis recovers choerolophodont gomphotheres as basal to trilophodont gomphotheres and therefore a distinct family. Distribution Fossils of choerolophodontids have been found in Africa, China, Anatolia, and the Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who .... References Elephantida Prehistoric mammal families Miocene first appearances Miocene extinctions Fossils of Serbia {{paleo-proboscidean-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gomphotheriidae
Gomphotheres are any members of the diverse, extinct taxonomic family Gomphotheriidae. Gomphotheres were elephant-like proboscideans, but do not belong to the family Elephantidae. They were widespread across Afro-Eurasia and North America during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs and dispersed into South America during the Pleistocene following the Great American Interchange. Gomphotheriidae in its broadest sense is probably paraphyletic with respect to Elephantidae, which contains modern elephants. While most famous forms such as ''Gomphotherium'' had long lower jaws with tusks, which is the ancestral condition for the group, after these forms became extinct, the surviving gomphotheres had short jaws with either vestigial or no lower tusks (brevirostrine), looking very similar to modern elephants, an example of parallel evolution. By the end of the Early Pleistocene, gomphotheres became extinct in Afro-Eurasia, with the last two genera, ''Cuvieronius'' persisting in southern North ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gomphothere
Gomphotheres are any members of the diverse, extinct taxonomic family Gomphotheriidae. Gomphotheres were elephant-like proboscideans, but do not belong to the family Elephantidae. They were widespread across Afro-Eurasia and North America during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs and dispersed into South America during the Pleistocene following the Great American Interchange. Gomphotheriidae in its broadest sense is probably paraphyletic with respect to Elephantidae, which contains modern elephants. While most famous forms such as ''Gomphotherium'' had long lower jaws with tusks, which is the ancestral condition for the group, after these forms became extinct, the surviving gomphotheres had short jaws with either vestigial or no lower tusks (brevirostrine), looking very similar to modern elephants, an example of parallel evolution. By the end of the Early Pleistocene, gomphotheres became extinct in Afro-Eurasia, with the last two genera, ''Cuvieronius'' persisting in southern North ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Elephantida
Elephantida is a group that contains the elephants as well as their extinct relatives, the gomphotheres and the stegodontids. The following cladogram shows the relationships among elephantidans, based on hyoid The hyoid bone (lingual bone or tongue-bone) () is a horseshoe-shaped bone situated in the anterior midline of the neck between the chin and the thyroid cartilage. At rest, it lies between the base of the mandible and the third cervical vertebra. ... characteristics: References {{afrotheria-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern marine invertebrates than the Pliocene has. The Miocene is preceded by the Oligocene and is followed by the Pliocene. As Earth went from the Oligocene through the Miocene and into the Pliocene, the climate slowly cooled towards a series of ice ages. The Miocene boundaries are not marked by a single distinct global event but consist rather of regionally defined boundaries between the warmer Oligocene and the cooler Pliocene Epoch. During the Early Miocene, the Arabian Peninsula collided with Eurasia, severing the connection between the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean, and allowing a faunal interchange to occur between Eurasia and Africa, including the dispersal of proboscideans into Eurasia. During the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Elephant
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea. The order was formerly much more diverse during the Pleistocene, but most species became extinct during the Late Pleistocene epoch. Distinctive features of elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, pillar-like legs, and tough but sensitive skin. The trunk is used for breathing, bringing food and water to the mouth, and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. The large ear flaps assist in maintaining a constant body temperature as well as in communication. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears, and convex or level backs. Elephants ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jeheskel Shoshani
Jeheskel "Hezy" Shoshani (January 23, 1943 – May 21, 2008) was an evolutionary biologist who studied elephants and their relatives for over 35 years. Life and work Early life and career Shoshani was born in what is now Tel Aviv, Israel, but he held dual citizenship in the United States. His interest in elephants began in his youth after he read a Hebrew copy of Willis Lindquist's ''Burma Boy'', which told the story of the relationship between a boy and an elephant. He began his career as a zookeeper at the Tel Aviv Zoo and became the head zookeeper in 1966. He went on to research elephants in Sri Lanka and Kenya before moving to Detroit, Michigan in 1968 and becoming an undergraduate professor at Wayne State University around 1973. Shoshani founded the Elephant Interest Group (later known as the Elephant Research Foundation) in June 1977, and was the sole editor of its official journal, ''Elephant'' (formerly ''Elephant Newsletter''), for most of its run. He also establish ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The region is bounded by the Turkish Straits to the northwest, the Black Sea to the north, the Armenian Highlands to the east, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Aegean Sea to the west. The Sea of Marmara forms a connection between the Black and Aegean seas through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits and separates Anatolia from Thrace on the Balkan peninsula of Southeast Europe. The eastern border of Anatolia has been held to be a line between the Gulf of Alexandretta and the Black Sea, bounded by the Armenian Highlands to the east and Mesopotamia to the southeast. By this definition Anatolia comprises approximately the western two-thirds of the Asian part of Turkey. Today, Anatolia is sometimes considered to be synonymous with Asian ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whole of Bulgaria. The Balkan Peninsula is bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the northwest, the Ionian Sea in the southwest, the Aegean Sea in the south, the Turkish Straits in the east, and the Black Sea in the northeast. The northern border of the peninsula is variously defined. The highest point of the Balkans is Mount Musala, , in the Rila mountain range, Bulgaria. The concept of the Balkan Peninsula was created by the German geographer August Zeune in 1808, who mistakenly considered the Balkan Mountains the dominant mountain system of Southeast Europe spanning from the Adriatic Sea to the Black Sea. The term ''Balkan Peninsula'' was a synonym for Rumelia in the 19th century, the European provinces of the Ottoman Empire. It had a ge ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Prehistoric Mammal Families
Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of symbols, marks, and images appears very early among humans, but the earliest known writing systems appeared 5000 years ago. It took thousands of years for writing systems to be widely adopted, with writing spreading to almost all cultures by the 19th century. The end of prehistory therefore came at very different times in different places, and the term is less often used in discussing societies where prehistory ended relatively recently. In the early Bronze Age, Sumer in Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley Civilisation, and ancient Egypt were the first civilizations to develop their own scripts and to keep historical records, with their neighbors following. Most other civilizations reached the end of prehistory during the following Iron Age. T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |