Mammoth | |
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A Skeleton of the Columbian Mammoth. | |
Scientific Classification | |
Kingdom | Animalia |
Phylum | Chordata |
Class | Mammalia |
Order | Proboscidea |
Family | Elephantidae |
Genus | Mammuthus |
Mammuthus is the extinct genus from the Elephantidae family. They lived from the Pleistocene epoch from around 5 million years ago, into the Holocene at about 4,500 years ago.
Characteristics[]
They are proboscideans commonly equipped with long, curved tusks and, in northern species, a covering of long hair. Like their modern relatives, mammoths were quite large. The largest known species reached heights in the region of 4 m (13 ft) at the shoulder and weights up to 8 tonnes (9 short tons), while exceptionally large males may have exceeded 12 tonnes (13 short tons). However, most species of mammoth were only about as large as a modern Asian elephant. Both sexes bore tusks. A first, small set appeared at about the age of six months and these were replaced at about 18 months by the permanent set. Growth of the permanent set was at a rate of about 1 to 6 inches (2.5 to 15 cm) per year.
Species[]
Needs Information