Loxodontari aries: An Endangered Horned Proboscidean
Among the iconic Pleistocene megafauna, elephants hold a special place in the public imagination. However, recent paleontological evidence suggests these hairy elephant relatives may have shared their Ice Age habitats with an even more fantastical creature - the Elephant with Rams (Loxodontari aries). Representing an entirely new genus and family of proboscideans, this bizarre horned derivative of the mammoth lineage thrived across Africa between 200,000-50,000 years ago before disappearing alongside other giants of the era.
First documented in 2022 based on fossils found in Siberia, Loxodontari belongs to the newly described family Arielephantidae, considered close sister taxa to arimammutidae within Proboscidea. The genus name references its hypothesized ancestral link to elephants, combined with “Aries,” alluding to its distinctive horns. Alongside the trunk, tusks, large flappy ears, pillar like legs, and tough, but sensitive skin characteristic of elephants, Loxodontari sported a pair of tightly spiraled horns protruding from the temples like those of bighorn sheep. Even more uniquely, preserved remains reveal both male and female specimens grew horns.
The most striking feature of L. aries was its ram-like tusks. Rather than the conventional downward-curving tusks of other proboscideans, this species evolved upward-inclining tusks ending in a tight coil mimicking massive bighorn sheep horns. The tusks averaged 1.5 meters long in adults and featured ribbed surface grooves where the ivory protruded through the skin. Researchers speculate these bizarre tusks may have been used in mate competition, defense, and wallowing behaviors to clear snow.
Aside from its remarkable horns and tusks, A. aries shared many traits with african elephants. Adults grew up to 4 meters tall at the shoulder and weighed 6-8 tons. Their body shape skewed stocky compared to mammoths, with shorter legs and tail. Isotopic analyses of teeth indicate Arimammuthus subsisted primarily on grasses and sedges, though some populations showed more varied browsing habits. Herds ranged vast distances across the mammoth steppe biome to follow seasonal vegetation growth.
While the purpose of its bizarre tusks remains mysterious, the horns of Arimammuthus clearly served a defensive function. With both sexes bearing horns, these imposing structures likely evolved for sparring over mates rather than solely display. Multiple fossil skulls exhibit healed puncture wounds matching the spacing of A. aries horn tips, evidence of surviving combat. Logging these injuries provides insights into the social dynamics of this obscure proboscidean.
To understand the origins of Loxodontari, scientists compare its anatomy and DNA to both mammoths and more distant extinct proboscideans. The earliest proposed ancestor is the four-tusked gomphothere Platybelodon from the Miocene Epoch about 15 million years ago. Platybelodon possessed short tusks in the upper jaw leading some to consider it a transitional form between elephant-like tetrabelodons and later elephantids. Intriguingly, some specimens show flattened bony knobs protruding near the lower tusks. These primitive bosses represent a potential evolutionary foundation for Loxodobtari’s horns.
Further analysis places Loxodontari as emerging later from African elephant stock between 60 million years ago. Primitive Loxodonta subspecies like the South African L. africana display longer tusks and faint temporal bulges hinting at incipient horn development. Gradually, these unclear mammoth precursors gave rise to the distinct Arielephantidae family and genus Loxodontari. DNA evidence reinforces this direct lineage, with Loxodontari diverging from the mammoth evolutionary branch less than 2 million years ago.
Ultimately, climate change and hunting pressure led to the extinction of Loxodontari alongside other endangered megafauna. However, clarifying the evolutionary origins, anatomy, and ecology of this remarkable mammoth cousin adds another dimension to our understanding of proboscidean diversity. The interplay between tusk and horn elaboration in Loxodontari illustrates the quirks of evolutionary novelty. Surviving over 150,000 years through the Pleistocene, this unique horned mammoth variant was just one of nature’s many experiments in proboscidean evolution before the close of the Ice Age extinguished their kind.
With its imposing yet fanciful appearance, the Elephant with Rams represents a tantalizing portrait of an ancient ecology where massive hairy elephants walked the earth beside even stranger creatures. Reconstructing fossils like Loxodontari aries stretches our imagination about the forms proboscideans could have assumed with just a few tweaks to development pathways and selective pressures. Though gone for millennia, picturing this horned mammoth cousin lets us envision and study alternative evolutionary paths where elephant tusks and horns entwined into marvelous new shapes fitting no modern categories.