Woolly mammoths as we know them evolved between about 800,000 and 600,000 years ago. They came to North America about 125,000 years ago. The earliest known cave drawings were created about 64,000 years ago, but our ancestors hunted animals for meat about two million years ago. Woolly mammoths had huge teeth to crush vegetables. Mammoths were about the same height as modern elephants. The imperial mammoth stood about fourteen feet tall.
Mammoth bones, teeth and tusks, have been found in Washington and Oregon. The latest finding was by Jeremiah Longbrake, 9-year-old boy who saw something a bit different in a small backyard creek. It was brown and about the size of two fists. Mammoth teeth can be identified by a banded appearance via tooth enamel and dentin.
I’ve mentioned before that I love “Archaeology” both the science and the magazine and especially the magazine section entitled “Around The World” by Jason Urbanus. There are usually finds mentioned across North America and I’m thrilled when Washington, Oregon, and Idaho show up.
