Wooly Mammoth Info:Wooly mammoths are an extinct species of elephant that lived in Europe, North America and North Asia through the Ice Age. Most mammoths were actually about the size of the Indian elephant of modern times, but a few like the Imperial Mammoth of California reached a height of 13 feet at the shoulder. Some Wooly mammoths were of a dwarf size and have been found off the coast of Siberia on the Wrangel Island.
The Evolution of the Wooly Mammoth : About 4.8 million years ago, Wooly mammoths became a separate branch of the family tree than Asian elephants. Farther back, about 7.3 million years ago the shared ancestor of the wooly mammoths and the Asian elephants became a separate branch from the African elephant.
Megafauna Extinctions and the Wooly Mammoth : Many of the Wooly mammoths went extinct 10,000 years ago towards the end of the most recent Ice Age. The dwarf mammoths thrived until around 2000 BC. It is still unclear as to whether the Wooly mammoth died out due to overhunting or because of a catastrophic climate incident. One main theory states that the food supply for mammoths was reduced by warmer weather. |
