Palaeoloxodon tiliensis

Palaeoloxodon tiliensis is an extinct species of dwarf elephant endemic to the small Greek island of Tilos, one of the Dodecanese in the eastern Aegean Sea, during the Late Pleistocene and possibly the Holocene. More than 10,000 bones and bone fragments have been found in Charkadio cave, representing at least 45 individuals from juveniles to adults. It is a probable descendant of the large straight-tusked elephant and was around 10 percent of its ancestor's size. Preliminary radiocarbon dating from the 1970s claimed that it survived as recently as 3,500 years ago, which would make it the youngest surviving elephant in Europe, but other authors regard that dating as unconfirmed. Elephant remains were first described from the cave in 1972, and the species was given the name Elephas tiliensis in 2007 before later studies placed it in Palaeoloxodon.