My OperaDeath of Mammoths Postponed 2400 Years
Wednesday, December 16, 2009 7:35:56 PM
I think the most complete skeleton of a mammoth I have ever seen was at the museum in Lausanne (anyway one of the most intact ever found in Europe). It was really impressive.
So far it was thought that the mammoth died out about 12,000 years ago, but new research indicate that (pockets of) mammoths probably survived to as recently as 7,600 years ago.
Could this mark the end of 3 myths about the extinction of mammoths?
So relax, we (the humans) did not do it. A still viable cause could be climate change/global warming. A hot topic these days (COP15).
Instead of counting on "macrofossil" evidence the new study is based on "genetic fossils", it is DNA from frozen dirt and dung in central Alaska locked in permafrost samples. Two independent methods (radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence) were used to date plant remains and individual mineral grains found in the same layers as the DNA.
In Danish:
PS of 23 December 2009:
The relevant paper:
Ancient DNA reveals late survival of mammoth and horse in interior Alaska
Is published in PNAS as Open Access
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2009/12/16/0912510106.abstract?etoc=
THANK YOU PNAS
So far it was thought that the mammoth died out about 12,000 years ago, but new research indicate that (pockets of) mammoths probably survived to as recently as 7,600 years ago.
Could this mark the end of 3 myths about the extinction of mammoths?
- When mammoths for the first time came into contact with human beings and dogs in Alaska, they were infected by novel diseases that killed them.
- They were the victims of 1000 years of human over-hunting.
- A comet impact about 12,900 years ago at the Hudson Bay destroyed their feeding grounds.
So relax, we (the humans) did not do it. A still viable cause could be climate change/global warming. A hot topic these days (COP15).
Instead of counting on "macrofossil" evidence the new study is based on "genetic fossils", it is DNA from frozen dirt and dung in central Alaska locked in permafrost samples. Two independent methods (radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence) were used to date plant remains and individual mineral grains found in the same layers as the DNA.
- http://www.livescience.com/animals/091215-mammoth-extinction.html
- http://www.genomeweb.com/sequencing/dna-alaskan-permafrost-offers-insights-mammoth-extinction
- http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=lost-giants-did-mammoths
- http://news.softpedia.com/news/Mammoths-May-Have-Survived-for-Longer-than-Thought-129901.shtml
In Danish:
PS of 23 December 2009:
The relevant paper:
Ancient DNA reveals late survival of mammoth and horse in interior Alaska
Is published in PNAS as Open Access
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2009/12/16/0912510106.abstract?etoc=
THANK YOU PNAS
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