Phiomia

Genus of mammals

Phiomia Temporal range: Late Eocene-Early Oligocene ~37–30 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N

Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Proboscidea
Suborder:	Elephantiformes
Family:	†Phiomiidae
Genus:	†Phiomia Andrews and Beadnell, 1902
Species
P. serridens P. major

Phiomia is an extinct genus of basal elephantiform proboscidean that lived in what is now Northern Africa during the Late Eocene to Early Oligocene some 37–30 million years ago.^[1] "Phiomia serridens" means "saw-toothed animal of Faiyum".

Description

Phiomia serridens (=P. wintoni, P. osborni, P. minor^[2]) is estimated to had shoulder height 134.5 centimetres (4.41 ft),^[3] while P. major got larger size.^[2] It vaguely resembled a modern elephant, although, based on the shape of its nasal bones, it had only a very short trunk. It had short tusks on the upper jaw and also short shovel-like tusks on the lower jaw that were most likely used for gathering food. These were similar to those of the Miocene Platybelodon, Archaeobelodon, and Amebelodon, but considerably smaller. The tusks in the upper jaw may have been used in defence,^[4] or scraping bark off trees.

Life reconstruction of Phiomia serridens^{[citation needed]}
Restoration
Phiomia serridens (=P. minor) skull and model
Phiomia model reconstruction at the Natural History Museum, London

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Phiomia.

^ Strauss, B. Prehistoric Elephant Pictures and Profiles
^ ^a ^b Werdelin, Lars; Sanders, William Joseph (2010-07-20). Cenozoic Mammals of Africa. Univ of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-25721-4.
^ Osborn, Henry Fairfield; Percy, Mabel Rice (1936). Proboscidea : a monograph of the discovery, evolution, migration and extinction of the mastodonts and elephants of the world. Vol. 1. New York: Published on the J. Pierpont Morgan Fund by the trustees of the American Museum of Natural History.
^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 239. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.

Genera of the order Proboscidea

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Superorder: Afrotheria
Clade: Tethytheria

Proboscidea

†Arcanotherium †Daouitherium †Eritherium †Khamsaconus? †Moeritherium †Numidotherium †Phosphatherium †Saloumia
†Barytheriidae	Barytherium Omanitherium
†Deinotheriidae	Chilgatherium Deinotherium Prodeinotherium

Elephantiformes

†Dagbatitherium †Eritreum †Hemimastodon †Palaeomastodon †Phiomia
†Mammutidae	Eozygodon Losodokodon Mammut Sinomammut Zygolophodon
†Choerolophodontidae	Afrochoerodon Choerolophodon
†Amebelodontidae	Afromastodon Amebelodon Aphanobelodon Archaeobelodon Eurybelodon Konobelodon Platybelodon Progomphotherium Protanancus Serbelodon Stenobelodon Torynobelodon
†"Trilophodont gomphotheres"	Blancotherium Cuvieronius Eubelodon Gnathabelodon Gomphotherium Notiomastodon Rhynchotherium Sinomastodon Stegomastodon
†"Tetralophodont gomphotheres"	Anancus Paratetralophodon Pediolophodon Tetralophodon
†Stegodontidae	Stegodon Stegolophodon
Elephantidae	Elephas Loxodonta †Mammuthus †Palaeoloxodon †Primelephas †Selenetherium †Stegodibelodon †Stegotetrabelodon