Columbian Mammoth
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 Columbian Mammoth
©2001 SW Clyde, courtesy of byways.org |
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Prehistoric
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| Mammuthus columbi |
The Columbian Mammoth (Mammuthus columbi), is an extinct species of elephant that inhabited North America between 100,000 and 9,000 years ago. it is believed by some people to be the same species as it's slightly larger cousin, M. imperator, because of their similarities in fossil location and size. It was one of the largest of the mammoth species and also one of the largest elephants to have ever lived, measuring 4 metres, or 13 feet, at the shoulder and weighing 10,000kg (9.8 tons). It was an herbivore, with a diet consisting of varied plant life ranging from grasses to conifers. It is also theorised that the Columbian Mammoth ate the giant fruits of North America such as the Osage-orange, Kentucky coffee and Honey locust as there was no other large herbivore in North America then that could ingest these fruits. Using studies of African elephants, it has been estimated that a large male would have eaten approximately 450 pounds, or 200 kilograms, of plant material daily. A pair of Columbian Mammoth tusks discovered in central Texas was the largest ever found for any elephant: 5 metres, or 16 feet, long.
Based on studies of their close relatives, the modern elephants, mammoths probably had a gestation period of 22 months, resulting in a single calf being born. Their social structure was probably the same as that of African and Asian elephants, with females living in herds headed by a matriach, whilst bulls lived solitary lives or formed loose groups after sexual maturity. Recent DNA studies indicate that their closest living relatives are the Indian elephants, with African elephants slightly more distantly related.
The Columbian Mammoth was one of the last members of the American Megafauna to become extinct, with several specimens dating to 9,000 years ago or less and one near Nashville, Tennessee, reliably dated to only about 7,800 years ago.
The remains of Columbian Mammoths were discovered in the La Brea Tar Pits, located in Los Angeles, California, and the skeleton of one of them is on exhibit in that site's museum. This mammoth also lived in Mexico, where its remains are very common. A large individual is the central exhibit in the Regional Museum of Guadalajara, in the Mexican state of Jalisco.
