Mammoth - Facts
common name for several extinct species of the elephant family. Mammoths had long, curved tusks that reached a length of about 3 m (about 10.5 ft), and a prominent hump on the back. Those that lived in cold climates had a shaggy covering of long, thick hair. These animals moved northward as the glaciers of the Ice Age receded.
The first mammoths appeared in Africa during the early Pliocene Epoch, about 5 million years ago. The first North American mammoths migrated across the Bering Strait from Asia into Alaska during a period of low sea level about 2 million years ago. By the beginning of the Pleistocene Epoch, about 1.6 million years ago, mammoths inhabited North America, Europe, and Asia. Scientists believe that most mammoths had died out toward the end of the Pleistocene Epoch, about 11,000 years ago, although scientists have found the remains of dwarf mammoths that survived until around 3,700 years ago on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Ocean
The first mammoths appeared in Africa during the early Pliocene Epoch, about 5 million years ago. The first North American mammoths migrated across the Bering Strait from Asia into Alaska during a period of low sea level about 2 million years ago. By the beginning of the Pleistocene Epoch, about 1.6 million years ago, mammoths inhabited North America, Europe, and Asia. Scientists believe that most mammoths had died out toward the end of the Pleistocene Epoch, about 11,000 years ago, although scientists have found the remains of dwarf mammoths that survived until around 3,700 years ago on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Ocean
Comments