Gomphotherium fossil map
Where fossils of Gomphotherium have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 15 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 15 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Ice Age & later mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 33.9–0.0117 million years ago (Rupelian to Late Pleistocene) |
| Periods | Paleogene, Neogene, Quaternary |
| Family | Gomphotheriidae |
| Named by | Burmeister 1837 |
| Fossil records | 269 occurrences at 186 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States, France, China, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Mexico, Switzerland, Serbia, India … |
| Rock formations | txn:43240, Valentine, MR Caliente, Calvert, Ash Hollow, NS Caliente |
About Gomphotherium
Gomphotherium (; "nail beast" for its double set of straight tusks) is an extinct genus of gomphothere proboscidean from the Neogene of Eurasia, Africa and North America. It is the most diverse genus of gomphothere, with over a dozen valid species. The genus is probably paraphyletic, and ancestral to other gomphothere genera, as well as ultimately living elephantids.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Gomphotherium (revision 1373711748), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 22 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q132604.
