Mastodon is the ancestor of an elephant?

It's no secret that in the ancient world there lived unique animals, which, unfortunately or fortunately, we were not destined to see. But massive and huge remains testify to the greatness and strength of these mammals. So, in the past, animals adapted to the environment, and even individuals of the same species could change under its influence. Many are interested in such a unique mammal as the mastodon. This is an animal from the order of proboscis, which in many respects resembled mammoths, but also had differences from them.

Characteristics of mastodons

Nowadays, no one thinks that, perhaps, the mastodon is the brightest ancestor of an ordinary elephant. The main common feature of animals, of course - the trunk, as well as huge dimensions compared to other inhabitants of the wild. At the same time it was found that the mastodons were no more elephants than we can see today in zoos or on television.

Mastodons are considered extinct mammals. They had similar features to other representatives of the proboscis squad, but differences were also present. The main one is the structure of the teeth. These large mammals on the masticatory surface of the molars had paired nipples. And mammoths and elephants on molars had transverse ridges that were separated by cement.

The origin of the name "mastodon"

It is interesting that the mastodon is in translation from the Greek "nipple", "tooth". Consequently, the name of the animal came from the peculiarities of the structure of its teeth. Note that some individuals in the lower jaw area had tusks, which (according to scientists) were transformed from second incisors.

Mastodons were considered herbivores, unable to harm any neighbor in a large house called "Wildlife". The main dish of the proboscis was the leaves of trees and shrubs. Nevertheless, if the mammals were frightened, they could simply kill a nearby animal with its huge weight as a result of a sharp movement, not wanting it.

Male mastodons

Some scientists are convinced that mastodons did not exceed the growth of an ordinary elephant. The males of the proboscis group could reach three meters at the withers. It is worth noting that they preferred to live separately from the herd, that is, females and their young. Their puberty came to ten or fifteen years. On average, mastodons lived sixty years.

It is also worth noting that there were different kinds of mammals (American was described above), and almost all of them were similar. But in fact, mastodons appeared in Africa. It was 35 million years ago. A little later they moved to Europe, Asia, North and South America.

Interesting Facts

Mastodon (the portable meaning of the word provides an influential figure, something big, for example, the mastodon of business, the mastodon of literature), unlike the elephant, had tusks in the upper and lower jaw. A little later, the appearance of the proboscis unit changed, and the number of fangs decreased to one pair. Scientists have found that animals died out about 10 thousand years ago. Their species numbered about twenty.

One of the versions of the extinction of mastodons was the infection of mammals with tuberculosis. But after their disappearance they did not remain forgotten. Scientists are constantly studying the bones, tusks of mastodons, making new discoveries and delving into the history of unique mammals. In 2007, the DNA of the animal was examined from his teeth. The study proved that the remains of mastodon were from 50 to 130 thousand years.

Thus, the mastodon is a unique and not fully studied large mammal that walked the earth tens of thousands of years ago and was considered one of the most benevolent animals. It is proved that over time they began to eat the grass, preferring it to the leaves of trees and shrubs, although their massive tusks had excellent hunting.