tusked

Tusked is an adjective used to describe animals that possess tusks—elongated, continuously growing teeth that project beyond the lips. In most species, tusks are specialized teeth that can function as tools for foraging, defense, combat, and social signaling. The morphology and origin of tusks vary: in elephants and their extinct relatives, tusks are elongated incisors; in walruses, they are enlarged canines; in suids such as boars and warthogs, they are prominent canine teeth; in narwhals, the characteristic tusk is a long, spiraled upper canine that is typically found in males.

In terms of use, tusks aid in foraging (digging for minerals, stripping bark, or prying apart objects), in defense and rival displays, and in sexual selection where larger tusks can influence mating success. Growth patterns differ among species, sexes, and ages; most tusks continually grow and may show wear from use.

The term 'tusked' is primarily descriptive and not a taxonomic group. It is applied to living species with tusks as well as to fossil taxa identified by tusked dentition. Notable examples range from elephants and narwhals to boars and walruses, illustrating the convergent evolution of tusks as an adaptive trait across mammals.