The bones of the “mammoths” found in Alaska are actually those of ancient whales.
For many decades the explanation for the disappearance of woolly mammoths was unquestionable.
Radiocarbon dating of fossils in mainland Beringia told researchers with certainty that the Ice Age giants had all died there, around 13,000 years ago. But whispers about survival persisted. Environmental DNA showed that some people survived in small numbers during the Holocene.
The biggest challenge in deciphering Ice Age fossils is to resolve a discrepancy between the record that says they are “extinct” and the genetic analysis that can be performed, which could indicate that the ancient animals “are still alive.”
In order to make progress on this problem, in 2022 the Adopt-a-Mammoth Project was launched. It aims at cataloging more mammoths fossils using radiocarbon dating. This new project represents a systematic and thorough search for the most recent and relevant material between paleontological records documenting the extinction of mammoths and genetic evidence suggesting their survival.
The oldest DNA in the world is found on 1.2 million-year-old mammoth bones
They note: This effort has effectively ruled out these specimens as candidates for the last mammals.
This project has doubled the radiocarbon dating of mammoths fossilized in Alaska compared to the 50-year average.
The two epiphyseal plate photos show the upper and lower surfaces of each. University of Alaska Museum of the North
The excitement was high when the researchers discovered two epiphyseal vertebral plates in Alaskan sediments. Radiocarbon dating in Journal of Quaternary Science dated the bones at 1,900-2,700 years old. This is a shockingly recent date compared with human groups who built empires or developed civilizations around the globe.
As the excitement dissipated, closer inspection was done. The isotopic analysis revealed that the food signatures of these “mammoths” were similar to animals who eat marine resources. The feeding behaviour of these “mammoths” is unknown, and it does not match the diets that steppe giants ate. They ate terrestrial plants.
The ancient DNA test revealed the last twist.
These specimens did not belong to mammoths, but rather belonged to two whales – a North Pacific right whale and a Minke. These two marine mammal samples were discovered in Fairbanks, Alaska’s interior and date to the Late Holocene.
The frozen cells that come alive in Mammoth Moves, but just barely
It was the echoing of the ocean giants that had appeared to be the final breath of the mammoths. This shock brought with it another, even more puzzling puzzle: How did the bones of an animal that lives in water, like whales, end up in deposits thousands and kilometers inland? The study evaluated the following four possible scenarios to solve this puzzle:
Floodwater or debris on ice-rafts could have transported whale remains far inland.
Early peoples transported whalebones for use as tools, in trade or during ceremonies.
The shifting coasts, and the active glacial process explain why marine remains are now far away from today’s coastlines.
The sediments reworking process may have allowed bones to move long after carcasses had decomposed.
All scenarios are plausible. Despite the available evidence, it is impossible to know with certainty. The mystery is now balanced across land, sea and time.
The study, which revealed that the “last Mammoths”, were actually whales, shows how multi-layered analyses, radiocarbon dates, isotopes and DNA can all be used to better understand the truth.
Adopt-a-Mammoth continues to search for mammoths that are younger than 2,000 years old in order to find out if there were hidden populations during the Holocene.
The stories of extinction are seldom neat. These stories are made up of a mosaic of genes, fossils and sediments.
The tundra told a story that was different than what we expected. In this instance, whales took the place of mammoths. While the search continues for the mammoths, the labyrinthine past of the past has yet to be unraveled.
Journal Reference
- Matthew Wooller, Pat Drukenmiller, Gonzalo Oteo-Garcia, Francesca Di Paolo, Love Dalen et al. The story of the “mammoths”, adopted from Alaska, turned out to have a whaling twist. Journal of Quaternary Science. DOI: 10.1002%2Fjqs.70040
