Where did elephants and mammoths originate from?

Scientists have long wondered whether the extinct mammoth is more closely related to today's African elephant or Asian elephant. ... read more

They are survivors from an African group, the Proboscidea, mostly consisting of extinct animals. This is a common pattern for tetrapods, land vertibrates, a group in decline will briefly have the very largest animals. read more

American Columbian mammoths fed primarily on cacti leaves, trees, and shrubs. These assumptions were based on mammoth feces and mammoth teeth. Mammoths, like modern day elephants, have hypsodont molars. These features also allowed mammoths to live an expansive life because of the availability of grasses and trees. read more