Two Quaternary Period fossils of elephant teeth, as old as two million years, were discovered in Ardebil Province, northwestern Iran, the head of Natural History and Genetic Resources Bureau of Ardebil Province Tahereh Eftekhari said.
"As similar fossils have been found in Republic of Azerbaijan, the priority of the studies is to find the birth place and habitats of the creatures," IRNA cited Eftekhari as saying.
She added that studying these fossils opens a new season for introducing vertebrate fossils, especially those of elephants in Iran.
One of the fossils, belongs to a male and the other belongs to a female bald mammoth, according to Zahra Orak, the head of paleontology department at Natural History and Genetic Resources Bureau.
Based on the size of teeth, it is speculated that elephants had been adult, she said, adding that one of them resembles the teeth of Indian elephants.
She said that Indian elephants may have inhabited Iran some 2 million years ago, adding that the fossils are so unique and intact that no such Quaternary fossils have been previously discovered in Iran.
