Dwarf elephant
prehistoric species of small elephants descended from large ancestors
Dwarf elephants are prehistoric elephants which lived in the Pleistocene period. They are an example of island dwarfism.
| Dwarf elephants Temporal range: Pleistocene
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| Skeleton of a Cretan Dwarf elephant. | |
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| Order: | Proboscidea
in part |
Fossil remains of dwarf elephants have been found on the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus, Malta, Crete, Sicily, Sardinia, the Cyclades Islands and Dodecanese islands. Other islands where dwarf elephants have been found are Sulawesi, Flores, Timor and other islands of the Lesser Sundas and the Channel Islands of California.
They are considered to be one of the only elephant of the Mediterranean islands belonging to the mammoth line.
