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Molecular Phylogeny of the Extinct Pleistocene Dwarf Elephant Palaeoloxodon antiquus falconeri from Tilos Island, Dodekanisa, Greece

Journal of Molecular Evolution volume 55, pages 364–374 (2002)Cite this article

A partial sequence of cytochrome b (228 bp) gene of mitochondrial DNA was successfully determined from rib bones of the dwarf elephant Palaeoloxodon antiquus falconeri BUSK, which were excavated from Charkadio cave of the island of Tilos, Dodekanisa, Greece. This is the first report of DNA sequence of a dwarf elephant. The sequences were used to examine the phylogenetic relationships among Elephantidae. Phylogenetic trees reconstructed by the neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony methods provided identical topologies. The results support the "Palaeoloxodon–Elephas" clade, which is consistent with previous morphological reports according to which Palaeoloxodon is more closely related to Elephas than to Loxodonta or Mammuthus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Natural History Museum of Crete (NHMC), University of Crete, P.O. Box 2208, GR 71409, Irakleio, Crete, Greece, , , , , , GR

    Nikos Poulakakis & Moysis Mylonas

  2. Subfaculty of Earth Sciences, Department of Historical Geology and Palaeontology, University of Athens, Athens, Greece, , , , , , GR

    Georgios E. Theodorou

  3. Institute of Marine Biology of Crete (IMBC), P.O. Box 2214, GR 71003, Irakleio, Crete, Greece, , , , , , GR

    Eleftherios Zouros

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  1. Nikos Poulakakis
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  2. Georgios E. Theodorou
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  3. Eleftherios Zouros
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  4. Moysis Mylonas
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Poulakakis, N., Theodorou, G., Zouros, E. et al. Molecular Phylogeny of the Extinct Pleistocene Dwarf Elephant Palaeoloxodon antiquus falconeri from Tilos Island, Dodekanisa, Greece . J Mol Evol 55, 364–374 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00239-002-2337-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00239-002-2337-x

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