Woolly Mammoth

## Mammuthus primigenius

The ***Woolly Mammoth*** (*Mammuthus primigenius*, name meaning "*First Elephant*"), is a genus of mammoth that originated during the Middle Pleistocene epoch in what is now Siberia, later spreading towards Europe and North America. Standing nearly 5 meters tall and weighing around 12 tons, the *Woolly Mammoth* looked much like an elephant but was covered in thick fur, as it lived in the Ice Age. One of the many species of prehistoric elephantids, the *Woolly Mammoth* is also among the most famous prehistoric and extinct creatures of all time.

In the Series 2 episode "*Tales of the Ice Age*", a herd of around a dozen *Woolly Mammoths*, including calves and juveniles, were traveling from Eurasia to North America of 13,000 years ago.

## Facts

### Era & Discovery

Perhaps the largest terrestrial mammalian animal of its time, the *Woolly Mammoth* lived in North America, Europe, and Siberia during the Late Pleistocene, around 400,000 years ago. *Woolly Mammoths* evolved from hairless ancestors in Africa and have become living fortresses against the cold. Until recently, it was generally assumed that the last *Woolly Mammoths* vanished from Europe and Southern Siberia during the Late Pleistocene, about 10,000 years ago. However, new findings show that some were still present there about 1,700 years ago.

When the ice age retreated, mammoth populations decreased dramatically. However, the *Woolly mammoth* was occasionally hunted by Palaeolithic hunters, who also painted it on the walls of caves, engraved its likeness in bony and ivory and made statuettes of it.

Whilst *Mammoth* populations decreased due to climate change, it was being over-hunted by early humans, such as Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons, that drove them into extinction. Ever since their first discovery in 1779, the *Woolly Mammoth* has become known for being one of the most, if not, the most famous prehistoric animal of all time, possibly next to, if not, just as famous as the infamous *Tyrannosaurus rex.*

Scientists have found frozen mammoths in Siberia - some so well preserved, like Dyma the baby mammoth and the Jarkov Mammoth a frozen mammoth with few inches of wool.

### Physical Attributes

The *Woolly Mammoth* was a giant hairy elephant-like creature, one of the largest land mammals the world had ever seen. They grew to stand about 9 – 15 feet (2.7 – 4.5 m) tall and weighed up to 6 – 12 tons (13,000 – 26,000 lbs.), making them the largest land animals of their ecosystem.

*Woolly mammoths* had a number of adaptations used to cope with the coldest weather conditions, most famously the thick layer of shaggy fur on its body, up to 1 meter in length with a fine underwool as well as a thick layer of fat, for which the *Woolly mammoth* is named. *Woolly mammoths*, however, would have had trouble living in a sub-tropical climate but having a haircut would help it cope with the temperatures. Additionally, the coats molted in summer to cool off, otherwise, the *Woolly mammoth* would overheat and die. They also had far smaller ears than modern elephants; the largest *Woolly mammoth* ear found so far was only 30 cm (12 in) long, compared to 180 cm (71 in) for an African elephant. Other characteristic features included a high, peaked head that appears knob-like in many cave paintings and a high shoulder hump resulting from long spines on the neck vertebrae that probably carried fat deposits.

Another feature, at times found in cave paintings, was confirmed by the discovery of the mummified remains of a baby *mammoth*. Unlike the trunk lobes of living elephants, Dima's upper lip at the tip of the trunk had a broad lobe feature, while the lower lip had a broad, squarish flap. Additionally, the trunk of a *Woolly Mammoth* was strong enough to pull calves out of thick layers of mud, with the help of their tusks.

*Woolly Mammoths* needed to eat a lot of vegetation to sustain themselves. Sometimes, they had to eat as much as 180 – 200 kg of grass, twice a grown man's weight, in food sixteen hours a day every single day. They would feed on plains and grasslands, eating grasses, mosses, etc. *Woolly mammoths* could also make a grumbling sound with their stomachs, and they used that to communicate with their herd mates, even if they were dead, they tried. If their heads were held low and their ears close to their heads, it could also mean that they were sick. If two adult *Woolly mammoths* that looked similar to each other, they were probably females (rarely known as cows) from the same herd. The females were more social and have much smaller tusks than males (or bulls). Another important difference between mammoths and most other elephants was the blubber, reaching 10 cm (4 inches) thick.

### Behavior & Traits

*Woolly mammoths* were highly social animals and as such, like all kinds of herbivorous animals, they lived and traveled in huge herds of dozens, hundreds, even thousands of individuals, ranging from calves to adult females. The herd was made up of mothers, calves, sisters, aunts, and grandmothers, making the whole herd almost entirely of females, along with some young males; calves and adolescent bulls. Once bulls reached a certain age (from age 10 to 15 and even sometimes 18 years of age), they left the herd. Therefore, bulls lived a solitary life or live in bachelor herds, only returning to a herd to reproduce. Just like modern-day elephants, *Woolly mammoths* had a strong bond between members of the herd.

If an individual female was separated from the rest of its herd, the mammoth would not only suffer death slowly from a loner's life but also probably hunted by predators. Like other Mammoths (and similar to modern-day elephants), *Woolly mammoths* herds were led by a Matriarch. The Matriarch would be 50 to 60 years of age and it was her experience that ensured the survival of the whole herd anytime the going got tough, and she maintained cohesiveness in the herd. They halted when she did, slept when she did, and fed and drank when she did. Whenever there was trouble, such as a calf being stuck in the mud, the Matriarch came in to help. If a member of the herd died, then another member would stay behind. Insects were a source of irritation for these animals and the mud *Woolly mammoths* spray on their head prevented the insects from biting or *Woolly mammoths* did it just for the fun of it.

During mating season, bulls would undergo musth like modern-day elephants. In the process, they would undergo massive testosterone surges and they would become extremely aggressive. They would even trample on harmless neighboring animals, picking up warning fights with other animals such as *Elasmotherium*. *Woolly mammoths* also had the ability to live in the herds of other species in the past, that is unless if they were brought back to present day, they would manage to live along with other animals such as African elephants. However, they would have to be approved by the matriarch. Even when approved, the *Woolly mammoth* would not be able to interact with the calves (logically due to the fact that elephants can't survive among strangers).