Woolly mammoths were large creatures that roamed the earth from 10,000 to 300,000 years ago. In some areas, small isolated populations lived as recently as 4000 years ago. They looked like the elephants we see today, but with smaller ears. And they were covered in fur!
Woolly mammoths had two layers of fur and three inches of fat to stay warm. They needed to survive temperatures as low as -50°C. You think Toronto winters are cold? Just think, the coldest day ever recorded in Toronto was -31.3°C. Imagine how cold -50°C must be! What kind of clothing would you need to keep warm?
There are a number of theories about why mammoths became extinct. It's possible that early humans may have overhunted them. But scientists believe other factors may have been at play, such as climate change. As the Earth warmed, glaciers melted and sea levels began to rise. There is evidence that groups of woolly mammoths drowned due to local flooding. This is called a regional extinction event.
Climate change also affected the type of plants that mammoths ate. Grasslands vanished where mighty mammoths once munched on an all-you-can-eat buffet. Another theory is that an infectious disease may have killed the mammoths. Or genetic mutations made the population weaker.
We don't know for sure what caused their extinction. Maybe you can help solve that mystery someday! Recently, scientists have been able to recover woolly mammoth DNA. Some believe that we could use it to bring these ancient creatures back to life. Should we? What do you think?
Image source: "Woolly Mammoth - Horniman Museum, London" by Jim Linwood is licensed under CC BY 2.0.