"Mammut" borsoni

"Mammut" borsoni
Temporal range:
Size comparison of a specimen from Milia, Greece compared to a human
Scientific classification
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"M." borsoni
Binomial name
"Mammut" borsoni
(Hays, 1834)
Synonyms
  • Mastodon borsoni Hays, 1834
  • Mastodon (Trilophodon) borsoni
  • Zygolophodon borsoni

"Mammut" borsoni (sometimes called Borson's mastodon) is an extinct species of mammutid proboscidean known from the Late Miocene to the beginning of the Early Pleistocene of Eurasia, spanning from western Europe to China. As a member of Mammutidae it is related to the American mastodon (Mammut americanum), though its placement in the genus Mammut is disputed. It is the last known mammutid in Eurasia, and considerably larger than the American mastodon, with the shoulder height and body mass of males suggested to exceed 4 metres (13 ft) and 16 tonnes (35,000 lb) respectively, making it amongst the largest of all proboscideans and largest known land mammals. Its tusks, which could reach over 5 metres (16 ft) in length, are the longest known of any animal.