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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] |
Notiomastodon
''Notiomastodon'' is an extinct proboscidean genus of gomphotheres (a distant relative to modern elephants) endemic to South America from the Pleistocene to the beginning of the Holocene. ''Notiomastodon'' specimens reached a size similar to that of the modern Asian elephant. Like other brevirostrine gomphotheres such as ''Cuvieronius'' and '' Stegomastodon'', ''Notiomastodon'' was characterized by its short snout and tall, highly arched skull. The short jaw was due to the loss of the lower tusks found in more primitive gomphotheres. ''Notiomastodon'' was a generalist feeder capable of consuming various types of plants, which varied according to local environments. In the course of the last glacial period, there was an adaptation towards the consumption of grasses. The genus was originally named in 1929, and has been controversial in the course of taxonomic history as it has frequently been confused with or synonymized with forms called ''Haplomastodon'' and ''Stegomastodon''. Ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stegomastodon
''Stegomastodon'' ('roof breast tooth') is an extinct genus of gomphotheres, a family of proboscideans. It ranged throughout North America from the early Blancan ~4 Ma, to the early Irvingtonian (~1.2 Ma). The South American species have been synonymized with '' Notiomastodon platensis''. Species The following definite species have been described:''Stegomastodon'' at Fossilworks.org * ''S. aftoniae'' * ''S. mirificus'' * ''S. nebrascensis'' * ''S. primitivus'' ''S. waringi'' is considered synonymous with ''S. platensis''. A dispute now exists over whether ''S. platensis'' should remain within the North and Central American genus ''Stegomastodon'' or should be moved over to the exclusively South American gen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great American Interchange
The Great American Biotic Interchange (commonly abbreviated as GABI), also known as the Great American Interchange and the Great American Faunal Interchange, was an important late Cenozoic paleozoogeographic biotic interchange event in which land and freshwater fauna migrated from North America via Central America to South America and vice versa, as the volcanic Isthmus of Panama rose up from the sea floor and bridged the formerly separated continents. Although earlier dispersals had occurred, probably over water, the migration accelerated dramatically about 2.7 million years ( Ma) ago during the Piacenzian age. It resulted in the joining of the Neotropic (roughly South American) and Nearctic (roughly North American) biogeographic realms definitively to form the Americas. The interchange is visible from observation of both biostratigraphy and nature (neontology). Its most dramatic effect is on the zoogeography of mammals, but it also gave an opportunity for reptiles, amphibia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cuvieronius
''Cuvieronius'' is an extinct New World genus of gomphothere, named after the French naturalist Georges Cuvier. Alive, specimens typically stood about tall at the shoulder, weighed about and would have superficially resembled a modern elephant with spiral-shaped tusks. Taxonomy The species now known as ''Cuvieronius hyodon'' was among the first fossil animals from the New World to be studied. The first remains of this species were recovered from Ecuador by Alexander von Humboldt, at a location the local population referred to as the "Field of Giants".Mayor, A. (2005). Fossil legends of the first Americans. Princeton University Press. Humboldt recognized that, rather than being bones of giant humans as had been thought by the local population and previous Spanish colonists, they were similar to the giant elephants (''Mastodon'') being described from Ohio. Humboldt sent teeth that he had collected from Mexico, Ecuador, and Chile to French anatomist Georges Cuvier, who classifie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Proboscidean
The Proboscidea (; , ) are a taxonomic order of afrotherian mammals containing one living family (Elephantidae) and several extinct families. First described by J. Illiger in 1811, it encompasses the elephants and their close relatives. From the mid-Miocene onwards, most proboscideans were very large. The largest land mammal of all time may have been a proboscidean; '' Palaeoloxodon namadicus'' was up to at the shoulder and may have weighed up to , almost double the weight of some sauropods like '' Diplodocus carnegii''. The largest extant proboscidean is the African bush elephant, with a record of size of at the shoulder and . In addition to their enormous size, later proboscideans are distinguished by tusks and long, muscular trunks, which were less developed or absent in early proboscideans. Three species of elephant are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. Elephantidae is the only surviving family of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eubelodon
''Eubelodon'' is an extinct genus of gomphothere (a family in the order Proboscidea, which also includes modern elephants) which lived in North America during the Miocene Epoch. It contains a single species: ''Eubelodon morrilli''. Like other gomphotheres, it had a superficially elephant-like appearance with a trunk and tusks. Fossil distribution Fossils are restricted to what is now the Great Plains of the United States. Remains were found in the Poison Ivy Quarry, Antelope, Brown County, Nebraska, and Tripp County, South Dakota. Taxonomy ''Eubelodon'' was named by Erwin Hinckly Barbour in 1914. It was synonymized subjectively with ''Trilophodon'' by Osborn in 1918 and again by Tobien in 1973 with ''Gomphotherium''. It was assigned to 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 a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhynchotherium
''Rhynchotherium'' is an extinct genus of proboscidea endemic to North America and Central America during the Miocene through Pliocene from 13.650 to 3.6 Ma, living for approximately . This gomphothere had two tusks and may have evolved from ''Gomphotherium''. Taxonomy ''Rhynchotherium'' was first described in 1868 on the basis of a lower jaw from the Miocene of Tlaxcala, Mexico. Later, the type species epithet ''R. tlascalae'' was erected for the jaw by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1918. In 1921, a gomphothere skull from the Mt. Eden area of southern California was described as a subspecies of ''Trilophodon shepardi'' (a now-defunct combination for ''Mastodon shepardi''), ''T. s. edensis'', but was subsequently reassigned to ''Rhynchotherium''. Other species subsequently assigned to ''Rhynchotherium'' included ''R. falconeri'', ''R. paredensis'', ''R. browni'', and ''R. simpsoni''. It was the closest relative to ''Cuvieronius'', and may be ancestral to it. Lucas and Morgan (20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Blancotherium
''Blancotherium'' (meaning "Blanco Creek beast") is an extinct genus of gomphotheriid proboscidean from Texas. May, SR; 2019 "The Lapara Creek Fauna: Early Clarendonian of south Texas, USA". Palaeontologia Electronica (22.1.15)1-129 Originally named ''Gnathabelodon'' "buckneri", the genus consists solely of type species ''B. buckneri''. Etymology ''Blancotheriums generic name is derived from ,Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...< ...
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Gnathabelodon
''Gnathabelodon'' is an extinct genus of gomphothere (a sister group to modern elephants) endemic to North America that includes species that lived during the Middle to Late Miocene. ''"Gnathabelodon" buckneri'' Sellards, 1940 has been renamed ''Blancotherium''. Description It has been called the "spoon-billed mastodon" since its lower jaw was elongated and shaped like a shoe-horn or spoon. The flaring of the tip of the lower jaw was similar to that of the "shovel-tuskers" (''Platybelodon'' and ''Amebelodon''); however, ''Gnathabelodon'' species are distinct in having no lower tusks whilst the "shovel tuskers" have broad, flattened lower tusks. The upper tusks are large and curve outwards and upwards. With respect to dentition and overall body form, it was similar to species of ''Gomphotherium ''Gomphotherium'' (; "welded beast") is an extinct genus of proboscids from the Neogene and early Pleistocene of Eurasia, Africa, North America and Asia. As of 2021, two species, '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinomastodon
''Sinomastodon'' ("Chinese mastodont") is an extinct gomphothere genus (of order Proboscidea), from the Late Miocene to the Early Pleistocene deposits of Asia ( China, Japan, Thailand, Myanmar, Kashmir, and Indonesia). It is not to be confused with the genus ''Sinomammut'' from a different proboscidean family, whose members are commonly called "mastodons". The animal was very similar to modern elephants with sizes ranging from 3.6 to 5.3 m. Several species are known from China, the best-known being ''S. hanjiangensis'' from the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene of the Shanxi province. It is known from an incomplete skeleton of an adult (measuring 5.3 m) including maxilla, mandibles, teeth, tusks and other materials has been discovered. The Japanese species ''S. sendaicus'' described in 1924 from dentary materials from Pliocene deposits has been ascribed to the genus, as well as the species ''S. bumiajuensis'' (formerly ''Tetralophodon'') from the late Pliocene of Java. One in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in 2009 by the International Union of Geological Sciences, the cutoff of the Pleistocene and the preceding Pliocene was regarded as being 1.806 million years Before Present (BP). Publications from earlier years may use either definition of the period. The end of the Pleistocene corresponds with the end of the last glacial period and also with the end of the Paleolithic age used in archaeology. The name is a combination of Ancient Greek grc, label=none, πλεῖστος, pleīstos, most and grc, label=none, καινός, kainós (latinized as ), 'new'. At the end of the preceding Pliocene, the previously isolated North and South American continents were joined by the Isthmus of Panama, causing Great American Interchang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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