Smallest true elephant species ever

The smallest true elephant species ever was the Tilo dwarf elephant Palaeoloxodon falconeri, a tiny species of straight-tusked elephant (genus Palaeoloxodon). Inhabiting Sicily and Malta, it stood no more than 1 m (3 ft 3.37 in) at the shoulder, and is a famous example of insular dwarfism, in which normal-sized species isolated on islands often transform via evolution into much smaller forms. It died out 11.7 million years ago, during the late Pleistocene epoch. During the Pleistocene epoch, several Mediterranean islands were also home to various other species of dwarf straight-tusked elephant. These include the Maltese dwarf elephant P. mnaidriensis, the Cretan dwarf elephant P. chaniensis, and the Cypriot dwarf elephant P. cypriotes. There were even some dwarf mammoth species there too.