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The mastodon (which means "breast teeth" in Greek) is any extinct proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus Mammut (family Mammutidae) that inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of the Pleistocene 10,000 to 11,000 years ago. Mastodons lived in herds and were predominantly forest-dwelling animals. They survived on a mixed diet and obtained food by browsing and grazing, somewhat similar to modern elephants, but probably with greater emphasis on browsing.

The American mastodon (M. americanum), and the Pacific mastodon (M. pacificus), are the youngest and best-known species of the genus. Mastodons disappeared from North America as part of a mass extinction of most of the Pleistocene megafauna, widely believed to have been caused by a combination of climate changes at the end of the Pleistocene combined with overexploitation by Clovis hunters.

Compared to mammoths, mastodons had shorter legs, a longer body and were more heavily muscled, a build similar to that of the current Asian elephants. The average body size of the American mastodon was around 2.3 m (7 ft 7 in) in height at the shoulders, corresponding to a large female or a small male, but large males could grow up to 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) in height and weigh as much as 4.5 tonnes (5 short tons). However, the 35-year-old specimen AMNH 9950 could grow 2.89 meters (9.5 ft) tall and weighed 7.8 tonnes (7.7 long tons; 8.6 short tons), and another male grew 3.25 meters (10.7 ft) tall and weighed 11 tonnes (11 long tons; 12 short tons). Another species, the Borson's mastodon (M. borsoni) (although it may actually be a species of the genus Zygolophodon), is known from 30–40-year-old males that were 3.9–4.1 meters (12.8–13.5 feet) tall and 14–16 tons (14–16 long tons; 15–18 short tons) in weight. Like modern elephants, the females were smaller than the males. They had a low and long skull with long curved tusks, with those of the males being more massive and more strongly curved. Mastodons had cusp-shaped teeth, very different from mammoth and elephant teeth (which have a series of enamel plates), well-suited for chewing leaves and branches of trees and shrubs.

Games[]

Jurassic Park: Builder[]

see Mastodon/Builder

The Mastodon appears as a limited edition Glacier Park animal in Jurassic Park: Builder.

Jurassic World: The Game[]

see Mastodon/JW: TG

The Mastodon appears as a tournament Cenozoic animal in Jurassic World: The Game.

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