Mammoths

North American Road Builders (Scientific Theory)
Mastodons were browsers, not grazers. They tended to go in a straight line from food source to food source. These massive animals in massive herds would continually walk the same paths for thousands of years. This would make a wide compacted flat trail. Rain water would carve the trails deep into elevated regions, contributing to the developing of mountain passes. When the mammoths (grazers) migrated (mostly north-south) they tended to follow the mastodon tracks where they found them because it was easier than navigating vegetation and unflattened paths. Also the enormous prehistoric muskox traversed these trails. This occurred twice a year for thousands of years, further developing the path. So great was the traffic that even the narrowest paths and the rockiest ground were eventually reduces to wide smooth surfaces. The Mastadons and and mammoths were both replaced by the bison (that were much, much larger at one time) that engaged in browsing (a little bit), grazing, and migrating on these very old paths. The Native Americans followed the bison on these paths and used these paths for travel in general. Eventually the settlers where guided to these paths by the Native Americans or occasionally the modern bison. These paths, when located, were an excellent start for railroads and eventually paved roads. This one reason is why rails roads and bison did not coexist well. the paths were made even wider and flatter and in some cases carving into mountains to make them shorter. These were inviting to the bison and even shelter in mountain passes where the carved path was ,ore out of the weather . Sometime they would block the tracks for days. Sadly, there is not one road, or even an American car, named after mastodons, mammoths, muskox, or bison.

This article is duplicated in the mastodon group
This article is duplicated in the Bison group

Mammoths are known for their size even more than elephants. The largest known specimen was 5 meters (16 feet) at the shoulder. Estimates place their weight at 6 to 8 tonnes for both sexes with the males of some species reaching 12 tonnes. Some species had tusks up to 3.4 m (11-foot) long. Most actually had similarly size and tusks as as modern Asian elephants. But one species of mammoth was 1.8-2.3 m (5.9-7.5 ft) at the shoulder and another was was 1.4-2.1 m (4.5-7 ft).

Once thought to have gone extinct around 10,000 BC. Recent evidence suggests that at least one species persisted until 1,650 BC. The would have placed it well within the time of dozens of human civilizations. A few Egyptian wall paintings appear to show mammoths along with other creatures from outside the region. Scholars have not reach a consensus as to whether mammoths were known by witness, reputation, or not at all to ancient Egyptians (not at all is currently favored). On a possible related note, tobacco and cocaine (from the Americas) have also been found in ancient Egyptian mummies. Most Scholars do not accept these findings.

Parent Tag
Proboscidea (Elephant-like creatures)

Related Tags
Elephant
Mastodon
Mammoth
Moeritherium
Platybelodon
Phosphatherium
Numidotherium (Numidia beast)
Amebelodon
Barytherium
Anthracobunidae
Gomphotheres
Mammutidae
Desmostylia
oliphaunts (mûmakil)