Well, it looks like we can thank a changing climate for the evolution of the elephant’s trunk. Proboscideans first started popping up in Africa during the early Eocene, around 55 million years ago.

Using its trunk, the elephant first tried to pull the gazelle up of the water, but its struggles caused the elephant to lose ...

D. bozasi went extinct around a million years ago. By the time modern humans began spreading around the world some 130,000 years ago, there were only 15 species of proboscideans still alive.

Indian Forest Service ranger Parveen Kaswan shared a video on Twitter showcasing intriguing elephant behavior. A mother elephant led her herd across a road, carrying her dead calf gently in her trunk.

First, the African forest elephant, a third species, wasn’t included in the analysis. She says those animals would have provided another point of reference for the development and use of the trunk.

The quick-thinking elephant extended its trunk into the water to create a place for the gazelle to climb out. Unfortunately, the first rescue attempt didn’t work.

Even a baby elephant, like this newborn Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), has a well-wrinkled trunk, which is so much more useful than storybook smooth forms. Paul Gilham/Getty Images Share this: ...

Early humans began wiping out elephant relatives 1.8 million years ago. ... The number of species of elephant-like animals, known as proboscideans after the Latin for trunk, ...