Work

Rediscovering Mammoths in Taiwan: The Type Specimens of Mammuthus armeniacus taiwanicus (Proboscidea, Elephantidae)

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The recognition of a proboscidean subspecies, Mammuthus armeniacus taiwanicus, from the Pleistocene represents one of the milestones for paleontological research in Taiwan in the 1970s. However, the whereabouts of the holotype and referred specimens remain unknown due to curation issues. Here, we report the rediscovery of the holotype and five referred specimens in the Tainan City Zuojhen Fossil Park collection and National Taiwan University, out of 16 original specimens in the private and museum collections, after our intense search for historical fossil materials. Given the size difference between the holotype (smaller) from Taiwan and other Eurasian mammoths, this Taiwan mammoth may represent an island dwarf rather than only a subspecies of steppe mammoths as originally identified in 1975. Our rediscovery of original materials of mammoths from the Pleistocene of Taiwan promises to further test this taxonomic and evolutionary hypothesis in the eastern margin of Eurasia, and to elucidate the Pleistocene extinctions and faunal turnover leading to the modern biodiversity. Published online 23 April, 2025; Print publication 31 July, 2025

Source: Mammal Study

DOI: 10.3106/ms2024-0028

Authors: Cheng-Han Sun, Yi-Yang Cho, Yi-Lu Liaw, Chun-Hsiang Chang, Cheng-Hsiu Tsai

Institutions: National Taiwan University, National Museum of Natural Science

Language: English

Topic: Evolution and Paleontology Studies

Subfield: Paleontology

Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

Funders: Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan, National Taiwan University, National Science and Technology Council

Award: Unexpected Diversity: Rise and Fall of Vertebrate Evolution in Taiwan