{
  "id": 14002384,
  "title": "700,000-Year-Old Elephant Tooth Reveals a Lost Ecosystem Shared by Early Humans",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/700-000-year-old-elephant-tooth-reveals-a-lost-ecosystem-shared-by",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-12T16:45:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Discover Magazine",
    "slug": "discover-magazine",
    "url": "https://www.discovermagazine.com/700-000-year-old-elephant-tooth-reveals-a-lost-ecosystem-shared-by-early-humans-49797"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Seven hundred thousand years ago, an elephant roamed the woodlands and wetlands of the Upper Jordan River in present-day Israel. Its remains, uncovered at North of Bridge Acheulian site, offer a glimpse into the Pleistocene ecosystems and the communities that inhabited the area. A team of researchers, led by Hannah Farrell, a Ph.D. candidate at Haifa University, studied the elephant's molars and tusk fragments to reconstruct the environment. The findings indicate that the region was characterized by a humid Mediterranean climate, with woodlands, wetlands, and waterways providing a suitable habitat for both the elephant and early humans. The research, published in Quaternary Science Reviews, suggests that the landscape featured a mosaic of wetlands, oak woodlands, and grasses, along with riparian vegetation. This environment likely played a crucial role in shaping the lives of the elephants, hominins, and other species that thrived in the area.",
  "summary": "Discover what fossilized elephant teeth and tusk fragments can tell us about prehistoric ecosystems.",
  "key_points": [
    "Elephant tooth found at North of Bridge Acheulian site, Israel",
    "Pleistocene ecosystem revealed through molar and tusk analysis",
    "Humid Mediterranean climate with wetlands and oak woodlands"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}