Gomphotherium

Credit: Sergio Perez.

*Gomphotherium* is an extinct genus of gomphothere that lived in Eurasia (Mainly Northern and Central Europe, Pakistan, China and Japan), Kenya and North America during the Miocene to the Early Pliocene.

## Description

*Gomphotherium* has four tusks, two long straight tusks on the upper jaw, and two short, blunt tusks on the bottom jaw. The blunt tusks were likely used for scooping sediment in search for food. The lower jaw is elongated, likely to support the parallel shovel-like tusks. Unlike modern elephants, the long straight tusks on the upper jaw were covered in enamel. *Gomphotherium* is characterized by a low and elongated skull, and a shorter trunk like that of a tapirs, in contrast to a modern elephant. In comparison to other, earlier proboscids, *Gomphotherium* had fewer molars, with high ridges to expand the grinding range.

"G. buzdari" is known from a circular-headed and wider-than-shaft and greater trochanter, medio-dorsally directed femur and a slender, proximally-elongated tibia with a fibular fossa and a ridge on the sides and an oval cavity in the center cross-section. A depression is between the trochanter and femur head, which the former raising higher than the notch and is thicker than the adjoining notch. There is either a large fossa or a small depression at the anterior of the proximal femur, a small rise close to the laterally transverse middle, with a large thick end forming two condyles. It was named by Malkani in 2019 alongside many other new taxa in a large naming paper. It is known from the Mitra Formation and honours the Buzdar tribe. However, many of Malkani's taxa are said by himself to be nomina nuda, so "G. buzdari" is likely a nomen nudum. The largest Gomphotherium species, G. Steinheimense, which inhabited Germany and China, reached a weight of 6.7 tons (7.4 short tons).

## Paleoecology

*Gomphotherium* likely lived in swamps, using their jaws to uproot or scrape aquatic vegetation out of the water and into their jaws. Some *Gomphotherium* lived in dry wooded regions near lakes.

## Classification

*Gomphotherium* is separated into two subgenera: *Gomphotherium (Gomphotherium)* and *Gomphotherium (Genomastodon)*. *G. calvertensis* is incertae serdis and "G. buzdari" is likely a nomen nudum. *Gomphotherium (Gomphotherium)* consists of *G. angustidens*, *G. annectens*, *G. browni*, *G. connexum*, *G. cooperi*, *G. hannibali*, *G. inopinatum*, *G. libycum*, *G. mongoliense*, *G. obscurum*, *G. pojoaquensis*, *G. productum*, *G. pygmaeus*, *G. riograndensis*, *G. steinheimense*, *G. subtapiroideum*, *G. sylvaticum*, *G. wimani* and *G. tassyi*. *Gomphotherium (Genomastodon)* consists of *G. osborni* and *G. willistoni*. Several species of unknown subgenera are known.

## Notable Specimens

* MSM-MSID-1 and MSM-MSID-2: The holotype fibula and tibia of "G. buzdari".
* DMNH 1261: *G. productum* femur, pelvis and humerus.

## Species

* *G. anguirvalis*
* *G. angustidens*
* *G. brewsterensis*
* *G. connexus*
* *G. emmonsi*
* *G. gratum*
* *G. nebrascensis*
* *G. ngorora*
* *G. pygmaeus*
* *G. rugosidens*
* *G. shensiensis*
* *G. simplicidens*
* *G. wimani*
* *G. annectens*
* *G. browni*
* *G. connexum*
* *G. cooperi*
* *G. hannibali*
* *G. inopinatum*
* *G. libycum*
* *G. mongoliense*
* *G. obscurum*
* *G. pojoaquensis*
* *G. productum*
* *G. riograndensis*
* *G. steinheimense*
* *G. subtapiroideum*
* *G. sylvaticum*
* *G. tassyi*
* *G. osborni*
* *G. willistoni*
* *G. calvertensis*
* "G. buzdari"?
* *G. steinheimense*?

## References

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gomphotherium
* https://www.scirp.org/html/3-1211321\_96519.htm
* https://paleobiodb.org/classic/basicTaxonInfo?taxon\_no=43247