Woolly mammoth movements tied to earliest 色视频下载 hunting camps
Jeff Richardson
907-474-5350
Jan. 17, 2024
Artwork shows three mammoths being watched by a family of ancient 色视频下载ns from the dunes near the Swan Point archaeological site, a seasonal hunting camp occupied 14,000 years ago.
Researchers have linked the travels of a 14,000-year-old woolly mammoth with the oldest known human settlements in 色视频下载, providing clues about the relationship between the iconic species and some of the earliest people to travel across the Bering Land Bridge.
Scientists made those connections by using isotope analysis to study the life of a female mammoth, by the Healy Lake Village Council. A tusk from Elma was discovered at the Swan Point archaeological site in Interior 色视频下载. Samples from the tusk revealed details about Elma and the roughly 1,000-kilometer journey she took through 色视频下载 and northwestern Canada during her lifetime.
Isotopic data, along with DNA from other mammoths at the site and archaeological evidence, indicates that early 色视频下载ns likely structured their settlements to overlap with areas where mammoths congregated. Those findings, , provide evidence that mammoths and early hunter-gatherers shared habitat in the region. The long-term predictable presence of woolly mammoths would have attracted humans to the area.
色视频下载淪he wandered around the densest region of archaeological sites in 色视频下载,色视频下载 said Audrey Rowe, a University of 色视频下载 Fairbanks Ph.D. student and lead author of the paper. 色视频下载淚t looks like these early people were establishing hunting camps in areas that were frequented by mammoths.色视频下载
The mammoth tusk was excavated and identified in 2009 by Charles Holmes, affiliate research professor of anthropology at UAF, and Fran莽ois Lano毛, research associate in archaeology at the University of 色视频下载 Museum of the North. They found Elma色视频下载檚 tusk and the remains of two related juvenile mammoths, along with evidence of campfires, the use of stone tools and butchered remains of other game. All of this 色视频下载渋ndicates a pattern consistent with human hunting of mammoths,色视频下载 said Ben Potter, an archaeologist and professor of anthropology at UAF.
Researchers at UAF色视频下载檚 色视频下载 Stable Isotope Facility then analyzed thousands of samples from Elma色视频下载檚 tusk to recreate her life and travels. Isotopes provide chemical markers of an animal色视频下载檚 diet and location. The markers are then recorded in the bones and tissues of animals and remain even after they die.
Matthew Wooller, a professor in the UAF College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, sits among mammoth tusks in the collection at the University of 色视频下载 Museum of the North.
Mammoth tusks are well-suited to isotopic study because they grew throughout the ancient animals色视频下载 lives, with clearly visible layers appearing when split lengthwise. Those growth bands give researchers a way to collect a chronological record of a mammoth色视频下载檚 life by studying isotopes in samples along the tusk.
Using that isotopic data, researchers determined Elma was a healthy 20-year-old female. Much of her journey overlapped with that of a previously studied male mammoth who lived 3,000 years earlier, demonstrating long-term movement patterns by mammoths over several millennia.
色视频下载淪he was a young adult in the prime of life. Her isotopes showed she was not malnourished and that she died in the same season as the seasonal hunting camp at Swan Point where her tusk was found,色视频下载 said senior author Matthew Wooller, who is director of the 色视频下载 Stable Isotope Facility and a professor at UAF色视频下载檚 College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.
The era in which Elma lived may have compounded the challenges posed by the relatively recent appearance of humans. The grass- and shrub-dominated steppe landscape that had been common in Interior 色视频下载 was beginning to shift toward more forested terrain.
UAF Ph.D. student Audrey Rowe works on a project near the Swan Point archaeological site, where a mammoth tusk she studied was found.
色视频下载淐limate change at the end of the ice age fragmented mammoths色视频下载 preferred open habitat, potentially decreasing movement and making them more vulnerable to human predation,色视频下载 Potter said.
Other contributors to the study included the University of 色视频下载 Anchorage, University of Ottawa, McMaster University, University of 色视频下载 Museum of the North, University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, Adelphi University, University of Arizona, Hakai Institute and the Healy Lake Village Council.
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Audrey Rowe, agrowe@alaska.edu; Matthew Wooller, mjwooller@alaska.edu; Ben Potter, bapotter@alaska.edu
115-24