Adrian M. Lister *& Hans van Essen **
*Department of Biology, University College London, London
**Burg Bloemerstraat The Netherlands
Abstract - European elephantid molars in the age range 3.0-2.5 Ma are distinctly more primitive, especially in plate formula, than typical Mammuthus meridionalis (Nesti), from the Upper Valdarno, c. 1.8-1.7 Ma. The material comes from Tulucesti and Cernătesti, Dacic Basin, Romania; Montopoli, Italy; and the Red Crag Formation, England. The name rumanus, originally applied to a molar from Tulucesti, is appropriate for this species, which we provisionally refer to the genus Mammuthus. The fragmentary nature and apparent loss of the holotype lead us to propose the complete Cernătesti molar as neotype of M. rumanus. The species “Mammuthus gromovi” (Alexeeva & Garutt), from Khapry, Russia (c. 2.3 Ma), is both geologically younger and morphologically more advanced than M. rumanus and, on dental evidence at least, differs little from typical M. meridionalis.