Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus
A large Elephas antiquus tooth from Barnstaple, Devon
Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus the straight-tusked elephant was a notably large-bodied elephant, with long, almost straight, tusks.
The straight-tusked elephant was a commonly found across Eurasia in the Middle and Late Pleistocene between 50 and 780 thousand years ago.
Well preserved fossils of straight-tusked elephants are know from Britain right across Europe and Asia as far as Japan.
The elephants were also environmentally significant as major tree-eaters. The elephants could heavily modify and open up woodland environments so that animals better adapted to more open conditions could move in
The straight-tusked elephants seem to have become extinct when their range was greatly restricted during the last major global ice age.
Species detail
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Taxonomy
Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus was a notably large-bodied elephant, with long, almost straight, tusks. The straight tusk elephant was first defined from remains found in caves on the Gower Peninsula in south Wales. Find out more.
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Distribution and habitat
Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus was at times a common across Eurasia. Well preserved fossils of straight-tusked elephants are know from Britain across Europe and Asia as far as Japan. Find out more about the habitats and distribution of this ancient elephant.
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Behaviour
Straight-tusked elephant consumed large areas of interglacial woodland vegetation and were major tree-eaters modifying their environment. Learn more about the behaviour of the straight-tusked elephant.
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Dwarf elephants
In some areas, most notably the islands of the Mediterranean Sea, this species seems to have developed into numerous dwarfed populations. Dwarf forms may have given rise to the legendary stories of the Cyclopes – ferocious human-like monsters with one eye. Discover more about the dwarf elephants.
