Platybelodon fossil map
Where fossils of Platybelodon 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 | 20.45–4.7 million years ago (Burdigalian to Zanclean) |
| Periods | Neogene |
| Family | Gomphotheriidae |
| Named by | Borissiak 1928 |
| Fossil records | 25 occurrences at 17 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | China, United States, Russian Federation, Kenya, Tajikistan |
| Rock formations | txn:43240, Shanwang, Lengshuigou, Ash Hollow, Xianshuihe, Lothidok |
About Platybelodon
Platybelodon (possibly "shovel tooth", or "flat tusk") is an extinct genus of amebelodontid proboscidean mammal, distantly related to modern-day elephants. Fossils are known from middle Miocene strata from parts of Asia and the Caucasus. The first specimens of Platybelodon, consisting of a partial skull, a nearly complete lower jaw, and multiple disarticulated remains, were discovered in the Tchokrak beds of north Caucasus, in the summer of 1927. The following year, Russian palaeontologist Alexey Borissiak described the remains, giving them the name Platybelodon danovi (now the type species of the genus). Several additional species have been described, including Platybelodon grangeri, named by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1928.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Platybelodon (revision 1370284006), 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: Q132817.
