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Stegodon
''Stegodon'' ("roofed tooth" from the Ancient Greek words , , 'to cover', + , , 'tooth' because of the distinctive ridges on the animal's molars) is an extinct genus of proboscidean, related to elephants. It was originally assigned to the family Elephantidae along with modern elephants but is now placed in the extinct family Stegodontidae. Like elephants, ''Stegodon'' had teeth with plate-like lophs that are different from those of more primitive proboscideans like gomphotheres and mastodons. The oldest fossils of the genus are found in Late Miocene strata in Asia, likely originating from the more archaic ''Stegolophodon,'' shortly afterwards migrating into Africa. While the genus became extinct in Africa during the Pliocene, ''Stegodon'' remained widespread in Asia until the end of the Pleistocene. Morphology Size Some species of ''Stegodon'' were amongst the largest proboscideans. ''S. zdanskyi'' is known from an old male (50-plus years old) from the Yellow River that is tall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stegodon Aurorae
''Stegodon aurorae'', also known as the , is a species of fossil elephantoid known from Early Pleistocene (2.0 Ma – 1.0 Ma) Japan and Taiwan. Description The best-preserved ''Stegodon aurorae'' skeleton, that from Taga in Shiga Prefecture, stands to a shoulder height of , with a body length of . It is relatively short-legged, the ratio between vertebral column length and shoulder height being 0.88. The body mass of ''S. aurorae'' has been calculated at one quarter of that of its mainland ancestor ''S. zdanskyi'', which had a shoulder height of around ; as such, it is an example of insular dwarfism. Distribution Remains of ''Stegodon aurorae'' have been found in over forty-five localities in the Japanese archipelago, mainly in central Honshū. The type specimen was from Ishikawa Prefecture, while among the eight skeletons, one was found in Saitama Prefecture, two in Nagano Prefecture, one in Shiga Prefecture, one in Mie Prefecture, and three in Hyōgo Prefecture. A fragmentar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stegodon Skeletal
''Stegodon'' ("roofed tooth" from the Ancient Greek words , , 'to cover', + , , 'tooth' because of the distinctive ridges on the animal's molars) is an extinct genus of proboscidean, related to elephants. It was originally assigned to the family Elephantidae along with modern elephants but is now placed in the extinct family Stegodontidae. Like elephants, ''Stegodon'' had teeth with plate-like lophs that are different from those of more primitive proboscideans like gomphotheres and mastodons. The oldest fossils of the genus are found in Late Miocene strata in Asia, likely originating from the more archaic ''Stegolophodon,'' shortly afterwards migrating into Africa. While the genus became extinct in Africa during the Pliocene, ''Stegodon'' remained widespread in Asia until the end of the Pleistocene. Morphology Size Some species of ''Stegodon'' were amongst the largest proboscideans. ''S. zdanskyi'' is known from an old male (50-plus years old) from the Yellow River that is tall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Insular Dwarfism
Insular dwarfism, a form of phyletic dwarfism, is the process and condition of large animals evolving or having a reduced body size when their population's range is limited to a small environment, primarily islands. This natural process is distinct from the intentional creation of dwarf breeds, called dwarfing. This process has occurred many times throughout evolutionary history, with examples including dinosaurs, like '' Europasaurus'' and ''Magyarosaurus dacus'', and modern animals such as elephants and their relatives. This process, and other "island genetics" artifacts, can occur not only on islands, but also in other situations where an ecosystem is isolated from external resources and breeding. This can include caves, desert oases, isolated valleys and isolated mountains ("sky islands"). Insular dwarfism is one aspect of the more general "island effect" or "Foster's rule", which posits that when mainland animals colonize islands, small species tend to evolve larger bodies ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Proboscidea
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 the or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stegolophodon
''Stegolophodon'' is an extinct genus of stegodontid proboscideans, with two tusks and a trunk. It lived during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs, and may have evolved into ''Stegodon ''Stegodon'' ("roofed tooth" from the Ancient Greek words , , 'to cover', + , , 'tooth' because of the distinctive ridges on the animal's molars) is an extinct genus of proboscidean, related to elephants. It was originally assigned to the famil ...''. Fossils have been primarily found in Asia, but some have also been reported in Africa. References Stegodontidae Miocene proboscideans Pliocene proboscideans Prehistoric placental genera Neogene mammals of Asia Fossil taxa described in 1917 {{paleo-proboscidean-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58See the 2014 version of the ICS geologic time scale million years ago. It is the second and most recent epoch of the Neogene Period in the . The Pliocene follows the Epoch and is followed by the Epoch. Prior to the 2009 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liang Bua
Liang Bua is a limestone cave on the island of Flores, Indonesia, slightly north of the town of Ruteng in Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara. The cave demonstrated archaeological and paleontological potential in the 1950s and 1960s as described by the Dutch missionary and archaeologist Theodor L. Verhoeven. In September 2003, an Indonesian field team and its coordinator of the excavation team, Thomas Sutikna, uncovered the first indications of a skull. Initially, the archeologists only analyzed the top of the cranium and due to the small size believed that the skull belonged to a small child. However, Sutikna and his colleagues soon discovered that its teeth were permanent and mature, revealing that it actually belonged to a fully grown adult. After a few weeks, the team had discovered most of this particular hominid's skeleton and later was coded LB1, LB2, etc., after the name of the cave. This skeleton later became the holotype specimen of ''Homo floresiensis,'' also known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elephantidae
Elephantidae is a family (biology), family of large, herbivorous proboscidean mammals collectively called elephants and mammoths. These are terrestrial animal, terrestrial large mammals with a snout modified into a Elephant#Trunk, trunk and teeth modified into tusks. Most Genus, genera and species in the family are extinction, extinct. Only two genera, ''Loxodonta'' (African elephants) and ''Elephas'' (Asiatic elephants), are Extant taxon, living. The family was first described by John Edward Gray in 1821, and later assigned to taxonomic ranks within the order Proboscidea. Elephantidae has been revised by various authors to include or exclude other extinct proboscidean genera. Classification Scientific classification of Elephantidae taxa embraces an extensive record of fossil specimens, over millions of years, some of which existed until the end of the last ice age. Some species were extirpated more recently. The discovery of new specimens and proposed cladistics have result ... [...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] |
Timor
Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is East Timor–Indonesia border, divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also known as West Timor, constitutes part of the Provinces of Indonesia, province of East Nusa Tenggara. Within West Timor lies an exclave of East Timor called Oecusse District. The island covers an area of . The name is a variant of ''timur'', Malay language, Malay for "east"; it is so called because it lies at the eastern end of the Lesser Sunda Islands. Mainland Australia is less than 500 km away, separated by the Timor Sea. Language, ethnic groups and religion Anthropologists identify eleven distinct Ethnolinguistic group, ethno-linguistic groups in Timor. The largest are the Atoni of western Timor and the Tetum of central and eastern Timor. Most indigenous Timorese languages belong to the Timor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in amber, hair, petrified wood and DNA remnants. The totality of fossils is known as the ''fossil record''. Paleontology is the study of fossils: their age, method of formation, and evolutionary significance. Specimens are usually considered to be fossils if they are over 10,000 years old. The oldest fossils are around 3.48 billion years old to 4.1 billion years old. Early edition, published online before print. The observation in the 19th century that certain fossils were associated with certain rock strata led to the recognition of a geological timescale and the relative ages of different fossils. The development of radiometric dating techniques in the early 20th century allowed scientists to quantitatively measure the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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