Mammuthus meridionalis partial axis vertebra

A partial second cervical vertebra (axis) of Mammuthus meridionalis (southern mammoth). This mammoth fossil was unearthed in Pest County, Hungary, during gravel mining operations. The approximate dimensions of the vertebra are: length 113 mm, height 138 mm, and width 212 mm. Its weight is approximately 2098 grams + packaging. The surface of the bone has been conserved using Polyvinyl Butyral 30, dissolved in ethanol.

(Archidiscodon) Mammuthus meridionalis: Body size: 3.5–4.2 m. Mass: approx. 7,000–10,000 kg. Geological age: Early Pleistocene, 2,500,000–550,000 years ago. Geographical distribution: Europe (Western and Southern Europe).

This species is also known as the "southern elephant." It appears in the European mammalian fauna at the onset of the Pleistocene, serving as a hallmark for the beginning of the Quaternary period. It is the earliest representative of the "true" elephants. In appearance, this prehistoric elephant resembles the modern-day Indian elephant. Its back was nearly straight—only slightly curved—whereas the back of the modern African elephant slopes steeply downward from the shoulder region. The tusks of the massive males curve slightly outward at the base, then extend horizontally, curving inward toward the center in a lyre-like shape. The tusks of the females were significantly smaller; they did not curve upward, nor did they twist inward. *Archidiscodon meridionalis* inhabited savannas, as well as areas with sparse scrub and forests; however, it did not inhabit open, grassy plains—environments strictly classified as steppes.