2023-10-03 10:59:01
The remains of a primitive elephant cemetery have appeared during the construction of the new firefighting logistics center that the Madrid City Council is building in the La Atalayuela industrial estate, in the Villa de Vallecas district. Specifically, large fossil remains have been found that correspond to eight partially complete specimens of the species. Gomphotherium narrowingfrom which jaws, tusks, femurs, humeri and complete hips have been recovered.
It is a distant ancestor of modern African elephants that lived in the area along with giant tortoises, large carnivores and ancestors of today’s horses, deer and wild boars. Due to a period of aridity and decreased temperatures that occurred about 14 million years ago, a herd of elephants took refuge in that area due to the existence of a stronghold of food and water, which is where part of said herd would die due to lack of food. Subsequently, a large flood covered the remains of the carcasses, which allowed them to be preserved and fossilized.
This extinct species of elephant was about five meters long by three meters high and It could reach a weight of about 2.5 tons. It had four fangs: two upper ones, divergent and curved downwards, and two lower ones, somewhat shorter. Likewise, it is estimated that its trunk was shorter than that of modern elephants.
Due to a period of aridity and decreased temperatures that occurred about 14 million years ago, a herd of elephants took refuge in that area due to the existence of a source of food and water, where part of said herd would die due to lack of food
He Gomphotherium narrowing It lived during the early and middle Miocene, between 16 and five million years ago, in central and southern Europe, the Arabian Peninsula and northeastern Africa, from Tunisia to Kenya. In the Iberian Peninsula, remains of this species have been found in nearby places such as Somosaguas and Carpetana, in Madrid, or in the Zaragoza town of Villafeliche,
It should also be noted that at the time these animals date from, hominids had not even appeared in Europe yet, something that is not known to have happened until around 1.4 million years ago in Atapuerca.
The fossils have been deposited in the Regional Archaeological Museum of the Community of Madrid, in Alcalá de Henares, where they will be preserved. Likewise, some of the specimens have been loaned to the National Museum of Natural Sciences, where they are being studied in detail.
The excavation, in which a team of eight paleontologists and archaeologists led by Alessandro Giusto and Jorge Morín participated, began in March and lasted until August, covering an approximate area of 800 m2. The work represents an important milestone not only for the information obtained, but also for the heritage recovered.
The fossils have been deposited in the Regional Archaeological Museum of the Community of Madrid, in Alcalá de Henares, where they will be preserved. Likewise, some of the copies have been lent to the National Museum of Natural Scienceswhere they are being studied in detail.
Fuente: City of Madrid
Rights: Creative Commons.
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