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Palaeoloxodon creutzburgi
Extinct species of elephant found on Crete From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Palaeoloxodon creutzburgi is an extinct species of elephant known from fossil found on the island Crete. It is a descendant of the large mainland straight-tusked elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus). It is known from localities across the island,[3] though known material is fragmentary.[4] P. chaniensis from Stylos and in Vamos cave, Chania, west Crete[1][5][6] is considered to be a junior synonym of P. creutzburgi. It had undergone insular dwarfism, being approximately 40% of the size of its mainland ancestor, and was around the size of the living Asian elephant,[3] with an estimated body mass of around 3,000 kilograms (6,600 lb).[4] Like its ancestor, it was probably a generalist feeder.[3] It lived during the Middle-Late Pleistocene,[3] alongside the radiation of Candiacervus deer endemic to the island, the mouse Mus batae-minotaurus, the Cretan otter, and the Cretan shrew.[7] Like other Pleistocene animals on Crete, its chronology is poorly constrained, though one specimen has been suggested to date to around 50,000 years ago based on amino acid racemization dating.[4]
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See also
- Mammuthus creticus a much smaller species of dwarf mammoth native to Crete during the Early-early Middle Pleistocene
References
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