Pakistan discovers 1.1 million-year-old stegodon tusk

Pakistan researchers claimed to have unearthed a 1.1 million-year-old stegodon tusk in the Punjab province.

Stegodonts, distant cousins of modern elephants, are thought to have been present on earth from around 11 million years ago until the late Pleistocene period, which lasted until the end of the last Ice Age around 11,700 years ago. This discovery will potentially shed new light on the mammal’s evolutionary journey.

The tusk measured some eight feet in length and was around eight inches in diameter, making it the largest ever discovered tusk in the country, according to the team.

It was found by researchers from the zoology department of the University of Punjab during an expedition in the Padri village of Jhelum district, said Khurram Shahzad, a spokesman for the university. Stegodonts were known for their long, nearly straight tusks and low-crowned teeth with peaked ridges. This indicated they were browsers or mixed feeders in a forested environment, in contrast to the high-crowned plated molars of mammoths.