New Study Reveals the Lifetime Travels of a Woolly Mammoth in Alaska
14,000 years ago, the tusk of a 20-year-old female mammoth was discovered at a campsite in Swan Point, Alaska. The mystery of how the tusk ended up there remains unsolved, leaving us to speculate whether the campsite owners hunted her or stumbled upon her remains and took the tusk as a souvenir.
Fortunately, the chemistry of mammoth bones can provide us with valuable insights into their lives. The tusk, named Élmayuujey’eh by the local council, tells a captivating story that could shed light on the lives and deaths of mammoths.
According to University of Alaska Fairbanks paleoecologist Matthew Wooller, Élmayuujey’eh was a young adult in her prime. Isotope analysis of her bones revealed that she was well-nourished and died during the same season as the hunting camp at Swan Point where her tusk was found.
Similar to the rings of a tree, each layer of Élmayuujey’eh’s tusk holds a chapter of her life, written in the language of isotopes. By examining the ratios of different isotopes, scientists discovered that she originated from Canada. She spent most of her life in Yukon before embarking on an impressive journey of approximately 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) in just three years.
Interestingly, Élmayuujey’eh was related to other mammoths found at the Alaskan hunting site, including a closely related baby and a juvenile. However, she was not related to some other mammoths found nearby, further supporting the evidence of her migration alongside a family herd.
Her new home in Alaska boasted the highest density of archaeological sites, some dating back 20,000 years. These sites belonged to the first human migrants from Eurasia who traversed the Beringian land bridge during the glaciation period.
Comparing Élmayuujey’eh’s journey to that of a previously studied male mammoth, researchers discovered that while he traveled more extensively, as expected from the behavior of modern elephants, their migration paths overlapped.
The researchers believe that the coexistence of human and mammoth hotspot areas in the Beringian landscape is not coincidental. Instead, it suggests that humans strategically followed the movements of these large animals, which were both highly visible and predictable sources of food.
The debate surrounding the extinction of woolly mammoths continues to this day. Some evidence suggests that humans hunted them to extinction, similar to other megafauna, while climate change also played a role.
In an attempt to mitigate climate change through large-scale rewilding, some researchers propose reversing woolly mammoth extinction. However, such an endeavor requires a deeper understanding of these animals’ behavior, which studies like this one aim to provide.
“This is a fascinating story that shows the complexity of life and behavior of mammoths, for which we have very little insight,” says McMaster University evolutionary geneticist Hendrik Poinar.
The findings of this research were published in Science Advances, offering a glimpse into the remarkable journeys of these ancient giants and raising important questions about their interactions with humans and the environment.
