Ice Age Humans Mostly Killed Female Woolly Mammoths, Suggests Ancient DNA
- An international team analyzing DNA from 521 woolly mammoths found that Ice Age humans selectively targeted female mammoths, with 70 percent of remains at butchering sites being female compared to 34 percent in natural settings.
- Female-Led herds followed more predictable migration routes than solitary males, making them easier for Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers to locate, according to lead author Hannah Moots, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Centre for Palaeogenetics.
- The analysis examined 11 major archaeological sites dating from 30,000 to 20,000 years ago, confirming these bone accumulations resulted from deliberate human hunting and creating the largest genetic dataset of its kind.
- Additionally, the study uncovered the first known case of X0/XX mosaicism—a genetic condition similar to Turner syndrome—in an extinct species, identified in a mammoth from Wrangel Island.
- These giant mammals provided essential resources for food, clothing, and ivory tools; recent advancements in ancient DNA technology made this biological discovery possible, Moots noted.
39 Articles
39 Articles
Researchers have discovered an amazing number of female animals during accumulations of mammoth bones, which reveals the hunting habits of people in the Ice Age.
In Korea, the Hanwoo consumed for grilling consists of nearly equal parts cows and castrated bulls. Regular bull meat is tough, so it is used for processing or stews. In the wild, wouldn't cows undoubtedly have been the top priority? It appears that the same was true for mammoths, which were the ultimate food source for human ancestors during the Ice Age. David Díez del Molino, a professor of zoology at Stockholm University in Sweden, [found thi…
Humans May Have Hunted Female Mammoths More Than Males, Researchers Say
A study published in Current Biology made a couple of fascinating discoveries about the woolly mammoth, the furry, snow-dwelling elephant ancestor that early humans boldly assumed they could kill and eat, and then did. Researchers analyzed DNA from more than 500 mammoth bones found across Europe, Asia, and North America and uncovered a pattern: most […] The post Humans May Have Hunted Female Mammoths More Than Males, Researchers Say appeared fir…
Ancient DNA from 521 mammoths reveals an Ice Age pattern: human-linked bone accumulations were about 70% female, while natural remains were mostly male
Science News: For decades, scientists have puzzled over the huge piles of mammoth bones scattered across Ice Age Europe, Asia and North America, unsure whether they.
Once millions of mammoths roamed the country. Archaeologists know from bone findings that the animals were hunted by Ice Age people for the production of meat, fat, fur and ivory. Now there are new clues that complement this picture.
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