Proboscidea
Sign in to saveProboscidea (; , ) is a taxonomic order of Afrotheria paenungulate mammals described by J. Illiger in 1811. It encompasses the elephants (family Elephantidae) and their extinct relatives. Three living species of elephant are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant.
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Proboscidea is a scientific classification that includes all elephants and their extinct relatives, making it one of the major groups of mammals. Today it contains only three living elephant species—the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant—though it once included many other related animals that no longer exist.
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Article
7 sectionsContents
- Evolution
- Morphology
- Dwarfism
- Ecology
- Classification
- References
- Bibliography
Proboscidea (; , ) is a taxonomic order of Afrotheria paenungulate mammals described by J. Illiger in 1811. It encompasses the elephants (family Elephantidae) and their extinct relatives. Three living species of elephant are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant.
Extinct members of Proboscidea include the deinotheres, mastodons, gomphotheres, amebelodonts and stegodonts. The family Elephantidae also contains several extinct groups, including mammoths and Palaeoloxodon. Proboscideans include some of the largest known land mammals, with the elephant Palaeoloxodon namadicus and mastodon "Mammut" borsoni suggested to have body masses surpassing , rivalling or exceeding paraceratheres, the otherwise largest known land mammals in size. The largest living proboscidean is the African bush elephant, with a recorded maximum size of 4 meters (13.1 feet) at the shoulder and a weight of 10.4 tonnes (11.5 short tons). 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.