Stegotetrabelodon is an extinct genus of primitive elephantid from the Late Miocene to Early Pliocene of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Italy.
The earliest species S. emiratus is known from the Late Miocene Baynunah Formation of the United Arab Emirates on the Arabian Peninsula, dating to around 8-6 million years ago.
[2] An estimate based on the size of limb bones collected from Sahabi suggests that S. syrticus may have reached 4 m (13.1 ft) in shoulder height and 11–12 tonnes (12.1–13.2 short tons) in weight,[3] with a similar estimate of 3.7 m (12.1 ft) and 10–11 tonnes (11.0–12.1 short tons) made for S.
[1] In comparison to later elephantids, Stegotetrabelodon has several primitive features, including the retention of permanent premolar teeth, an elongated mandibular symphysis and large lower tusks, shared with its gomphothere ancestors.
[4] The lower tusks are the longest known among proboscideans, reaching a length of 2.2 metres (7.2 ft) in S. syrticus, though they weighed only around 12.5 kilograms (28 lb), with the upper tusks also being large, reaching a length of 2.8 metres (9.2 ft) and weight exceeding 40 kilograms (88 lb) in S.