Pleistocene fossil elephant tracks in the Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa

Abstract

Fossilized elephant tracks, along with other vertebrate tracks, have been identified at several sites in the coastal Woody Cape section of the Addo Elephant National Park, in South Africa’s Eastern Cape Province. The tracks occur in aeolianites (cemented dunes). The track-bearing unit has been dated to 126 ± 8 ka, at approximately the boundary between the Middle Pleistocene and Late Pleistocene. In all probability, the trackmaker was the African savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana). Viewed in conjunction with the 35 elephant track sites that have been identified on South Africa’s Cape south coast, a widespread Pleistocene elephant presence can be inferred, which is not obvious from the body fossil record. Collaboration with Park management is aimed at developing an interpretive exhibit, which can be complemented by the physical recovery and exhibition of suitable fossilized elephant tracks or the creation of replicas using photogrammetry data.