Elephas

Elephas; Temporal range: Pliocene to present
	Asian elephant
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Proboscidea
Family:	Elephantidae
Tribe:	Elephantini
Genus:	Elephas; Linnaeus, 1758
Type species
	Elephas maximus; Linnaeus, 1758
Species
	8; see text
Synonyms
	Hypselephas

Elephas is one of two surviving genera in the family of elephants, Elephantidae, with one surviving species, the Asian elephant, Elephas maximus.[1]

Several extinct species have been identified as belonging to the genus, including Elephas recki, Elephas antiquus and the dwarf elephants E. falconeri and E. cypriotes. The genus is very closely related to the mammoth genus Mammuthus.[2]

According to a study by Saki Yasui and Gen’ichi Idani titled “Social significance of trunk use in captive Asian elephants”, a group of female elephants in Thailand were observed to determine if the way in which they use their trunks to touch other elephants was related to the social relationships they developed. Yasui and Idani concluded that there is in fact a significance amongst the two variables (Yasui and Idani). [9]

Taxonomy

Elephas is assigned to the proboscidean family Elephantidae and is made up of one living and seven extinct species:[3]

Elephas maximus – Asian elephant[1]
- Elephas maximus indicus – Indian elephant
- Elephas maximus maximus – Sri Lankan elephant
- Elephas maximus sumatranus – Sumatran elephant
- Elephas maximus borneensis – Borneo elephant, proposed but not yet recognized as valid[4]
- Elephas maximus sondaicus Javan elephant †
- Elephas maximus rubridens – Chinese elephant †
- Elephas maximus asurus – Syrian elephant †
Elephas beyeri † – described from fossil remains found in 1911 in Luzon, the Philippines by von Königswald[5]
Elephas celebensis † – Sulawesi dwarf elephant, described from southern Sulawesi by Hooijer in 1949[6]
Elephas ekorensis † – described from the Kubi Algi Formation, Turkana, Kenya[3]
Elephas hysudricus † – described from fossil remains found in the Siwalik hills by Falconer and Cautley, 1845[7]
Elephas hysudrindicus † – a fossil elephant of the Pleistocene of Java and different from Elephas maximus sondaicus[8]
Elephas iolensis †
Elephas platycephalus †

References

Shoshani, J. (2005). "Order Proboscidea". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
Fleischer, R. C.; Perry, E. A.; Muralidharan, K.; Stevens, E. E.; Wemmer, C. M. (2001). "Phylogeography of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) based on mitochondrial DNA" (PDF). Evolution. 55 (#9): 1882–1892. doi:10.1111/j.0014-3820.2001.tb00837.x. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-17.
Maglio, V.J. (1973). "Origin and evolution of the Elephantidae". Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia Volume 63. American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, pp. 149
Fernando, P., Vidya, T.N.C., Payne, J., Stuewe, M., Davison, G., et al. (2003). DNA Analysis Indicates That Asian Elephants Are Native to Borneo and Are Therefore a High Priority for Conservation. PLoS Biol 1 (#1): e6
Von Königswald, G.H.R. (1956). Fossil mammals from the Philippines. National Research Council of the Philippines, Manila
Hooijer, D.A. (1949). Pleistocene Vertebrates from Celebes. IV. - Archidiskodon celebensis nov spec.. Zoologische Mededelingen Museum Leiden, 30 (#14): 205–226.
Falconer, H. Cautley, P. T. (1846). Fauna Antiqua Sivalensis, Being the Fossil Zoology of the Sewalik Hills. Smith, Elder & Company, London, pp. 64.
Hooijer, D. A. (1955). Fossil Proboscidea from the Malay Archipelago and the Punjab. Zoologische Verhandelingen, 28 (#1): 1–146.

9. Saki Yasui & Gen’ichi Idani (2017) "Social significance of trunk use in captive Asian elephants", Ethology Ecology & Evolution, 29:4, 330-350, DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2016.1179684

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[MSW3-1] Shoshani, J. (2005). "Order Proboscidea". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.

[Fleischer2001-2] Fleischer, R. C.; Perry, E. A.; Muralidharan, K.; Stevens, E. E.; Wemmer, C. M. (2001). "Phylogeography of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) based on mitochondrial DNA" (PDF). Evolution. 55 (#9): 1882–1892. doi:10.1111/j.0014-3820.2001.tb00837.x. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-17.

[Maglio1973-3] Maglio, V.J. (1973). "Origin and evolution of the Elephantidae". Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia Volume 63. American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, pp. 149

[Fernando03-4] Fernando, P., Vidya, T.N.C., Payne, J., Stuewe, M., Davison, G., et al. (2003). DNA Analysis Indicates That Asian Elephants Are Native to Borneo and Are Therefore a High Priority for Conservation. PLoS Biol 1 (#1): e6

[5] Von Königswald, G.H.R. (1956). Fossil mammals from the Philippines. National Research Council of the Philippines, Manila

[6] Hooijer, D.A. (1949). Pleistocene Vertebrates from Celebes. IV. - Archidiskodon celebensis nov spec.. Zoologische Mededelingen Museum Leiden, 30 (#14): 205–226.

[7] Falconer, H. Cautley, P. T. (1846). Fauna Antiqua Sivalensis, Being the Fossil Zoology of the Sewalik Hills. Smith, Elder & Company, London, pp. 64.

[8] Hooijer, D. A. (1955). Fossil Proboscidea from the Malay Archipelago and the Punjab. Zoologische Verhandelingen, 28 (#1): 1–146.