Gomphotherium, illustration

Gomphotherium. Illustration and photo-reconstruction of the ancient proboscis Gomphotherium walking to a watering-hole in the bush. Gomphotherium is an extinct genus of proboscid that evolved in the Early Miocene of North America, living about 10 million years ago. The genus migrated into Asia, Europe and Africa. It survived into the Pliocene. Gomphotherium stood around 3 metres high with an estimated weight of 4-5 tonnes, and bore a strong resemblance to a modern elephant. However, it had four tusks; two on the upper jaw and two on the elongated lower jaw. These animals probably lived in swamps or near lakes, using their tusks to dig or scrape up aquatic vegetation. In comparison to earlier proboscides, Gomphotherium had far fewer molars; the remaining ones had high ridges to expand their grinding surface.