There are three elephant species, not two — genetics says so

Environment · Lorenzo Brenna · 2018-02-27

The first genetic mapping of the elephant has shown that two distinct species exist in Africa: the savanna elephant and the forest elephant.

We have always believed that only two species of elephant currently exist in the world: the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). Yet there are in fact three existing species, and their family tree is far more complex than previously thought.

Elefante nella foresta — The African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis) has long been considered a subspecies of the African elephant (Loxodonta africana). Genetic research has revealed that they are two distinct species © Ingimage

The truth is in the genes

This was revealed by the first genome mapping of the family Elephantidae; genetic analyses have shown that two different species exist in Africa: the savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), previously considered a subspecies. According to the study conducted by Harvard University, these two species lived in complete isolation from one another for 500,000 years and diverged phylogenetically.

The importance of the discovery

This is not merely an imperceptible taxonomic variation; the discovery matters because it increases the need to protect forest elephants, whose survival is far more uncertain than that of their savanna cousins. Assigning a distinct species status could make it possible to intensify conservation efforts.

Elefante africano che fa una doccia di fango — African elephants are seriously threatened by poaching. As a keystone species, their disappearance
will lead to the degradation of the ecosystems in which they live © Ingimage

A glimpse into the elephants' past

The genetic study, which compared fourteen genetic sequences — six from living elephant species and eight from extinct elephants, mammoths and mastodons — also revealed that the forest elephant is more closely related to the extinct straight-tusked elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus) than to the savanna elephant. The researchers also discovered that in the past there was extensive interbreeding among elephants, mastodons and mammoths. "We really did not expect to find gene flow between mammoths and mastodons and the ancestors of modern elephants, but our results showed frequent interbreeding," commented one of the study's authors, Professor David Adelson of the University of Adelaide.

Elefanti asiatici su un sentiero — The study published in the journal Pnas revealed that interbreeding between different pachyderm species was once common © Ingimage

Genetics and conservation

At the heart of the study is a new genetic research technique for reconstructing the evolutionary relationships between species, developed by scientists at the Australian University of Adelaide. "Our method was essential for independently confirming the precise evolutionary relationships and the correct reconstruction of the family tree," explained Atma Ivancevic, a researcher at the Adelaide Medical School. "The truly exciting thing is that this method will be applicable to other species."