African Elephant

African elephants are elephants of the genus Loxodonta.[2] The genus consists of two extant species: the African bush elephant, L. africana, and the smaller African forest elephant, L. cyclotis. Loxodonta (from Greek λοξός, loxós: 'slanting, crosswise, oblique sided' + ὀδούς, odoús: stem odónt-, 'tooth') is one of two existing genera of the family Elephantidae.[1] Fossil remains of Loxodonta have been found only in Africa, in strata as old as the middle Pliocene. However, sequence analysis of DNA extracted from fossils of the extinct straight-tusked elephant undermines the validity of the genus.[3]