225/263
[ stop the slideshow ]

Head of the early ancestor of elephants

Head of the early ancestor of elephants.jpg molars of elephantsThumbnailsHead of the ancestral elephantmolars of elephantsThumbnailsHead of the ancestral elephantmolars of elephantsThumbnailsHead of the ancestral elephantmolars of elephantsThumbnailsHead of the ancestral elephant

Head of the early ancestor of elephants—Meritherium—as it appeared in life. Observe the absence of a trunk and the enlarged front tooth in the upper jaw, which is converted in later members of the elephant-stock or line of descent into the great tusk. (After a drawing by Prof. Osborne.)