Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Palaeoloxodon cypriotes
open-in-new
<p><i>Palaeoloxodon cypriotes</i> is an extinct species of <a href="/facts/Dwarf_elephant/h015PWbt">dwarf elephant</a> that inhabited the island of <a href="/facts/Cyprus/t9wL6lVK">Cyprus</a> during the <a href="/facts/Late_Pleistocene/jKVh7yXL">Late Pleistocene</a>. A probable descendant of the large <a href="/facts/Straight-tusked_elephant/hSMRKd2m">straight-tusked elephant</a> of mainland Europe and West Asia, the species is among the smallest known dwarf elephants, with fully grown individuals having an estimated shoulder height of only 1 metre (3.3 ft). It represented one of only two large animal species on the island alongside the <a href="/facts/Cypriot_pygmy_hippopotamus/8KWwDtRC">Cypriot pygmy hippopotamus</a>. The species became extinct around 12,000 years ago, around the time humans first colonised Cyprus, and potential (but disputed) evidence of human hunting has been found. </p>