Proboscidea

Also known as proboscidean, proboscideans, proboscidian, proboscidians

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.

AI overview

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.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Species

Genus

PhylumAnnelida
ClassPolychaeta
OrderPhyllodocida
FamilyGlyceridae

Habitatmarine

Native toArizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Guatemala, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast

via · Kew POWO

Research

4,173 papers

Proboscidea from Kanapoi, Kenya.Journal of human evolution · 2020Sanders WJDOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.10.013
Brain evolution in Proboscidea (Mammalia, Afrotheria) across the Cenozoic.Scientific reports · 2019Benoit J, Legendre LJ, Tabuce R et al.DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-45888-4
Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.): A Comprehensive Review of Nutritional Value, Phytochemical Composition, Health Benefits, Development of Food, and Industrial Applications.ReviewNutrients · 2022Wei P, Zhao F, Wang Z et al.DOI: 10.3390/nu14194079
Of tusks and trunks: A review of craniofacial evolutionary anatomy in elephants and extinct Proboscidea.ReviewAnatomical record (Hoboken, N.J. : 2007) · 2025Nabavizadeh ADOI: 10.1002/ar.25578
Sesame seed allergy.Nursing · 2024Cockerell KL, Sawyer BM, Thornton KDOI: 10.1097/01.NURSE.0000998000.70863.96
Palaeopathological analysis of a Chilean gomphothere (Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae).International journal of paleopathology · 2019Labarca R, Pacheco ADOI: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2019.05.002
Transcatheter Myotomy for LVOT Challenges: SESAME Street 2.0.Journal of the American College of Cardiology · 2024Nickenig G, Sugiura ADOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2024.02.033
A new Mammutidae (Proboscidea, Mammalia) from the Late Miocene of Gansu Province, China.Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciencias · 2016Mothé D, Avilla LS, Zhao D et al.DOI: 10.1590/0001-3765201520150261

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Image: AfricanElephant.jpg

Show 4 more facts

Commons category: Proboscidea
taxon name: Proboscidea
start time: 60000000-0
taxon common name: trobčarji

Sources (5)

via Wikidata · CC0

~13 min read

Article

7 sections

Contents

Evolution
Morphology
Dwarfism
Ecology
Classification
References
Bibliography

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.