For comparison, the circumference of the Earth is 40,km. The study offers clues to the extinction of these magnificent creatures. For animals that ranged so widely, the encroachment of forests into the mammoths' preferred grassland habitat towards the end of the last Ice Age would have placed pressure on herds. It limited how far they could roam for food and placed them at greater risk of predation.
The work, by an international team, has been published in Science journal. Follow Paul on Twitter. Last mammoths 'died of thirst'. Image source, JR Ancheta.
The largest tusk found so far belonged to a Columbian mammoth from Texas and it was 16 feet long! Unlike elephant tusks, mammoth tusks especially those of woolly mammoths , twist like a corkscrew. The left and right tusks twist in opposite directions.
The curvature of mammoth tusks is clearly demonstrated in this painting by Karen Carr. What did Lupe eat? How old was Lupe? She earned a master's degree in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
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