Mastodons evolved in Africa about 20 million years ago and later spread into Europe and Asia. With the Bering Land Bridge that once connected Asia and North America, mastodons migrated into North America. During the Pleistocene, it ranged from Alaska to Florida. The American Mastodon became extinct about 8,000 years ago.
Mastodons weighed 6-8 tons and lived 25-30 years. The American Mastodon stood up to 10 feet tall. A female would produce 4-6 calves in her lifetime.
The American Mastodon (Mammut americanum) generally inhabited forests or woodlands characterized by spruce and evergreen trees.
Shown below are some of the displays of American Mastodon fossils at the Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument in Hagerman, Idaho.
According to the display:
“The American Mastodon browsed Southern Idaho eating spruce, pine, hemlock, poplars, and shrubs. These 7 to 10 feel (2-3 meters) tall herbivores were smaller and stockier than a modern elephant. They lived in woodlands and swamps on the edge of ancient Lake Idaho. Covered with thick hair, and equipped with curved, ivory tusks to help them browse and fight, mastodons thrived in Southern Idaho.”
Shown above is a juvenile Mamamut americanum.
Shown above is a baby Mamamut americanum.
Shown above is a mastodon vertebra.
Shown above is a portion of a mastodon humerus.
Shown above is a portion of a tusk.
Shown above is a tooth.
Shown above is a patella (knee cap).
More Paleontology
Paleontology 101: The North American Camel
Paleontology 101: The Hagerman Horse, Equus Simplicidens
Paleontology 101: North American Horses, Rhinos, and Camels (Photo Diary)
Paleontology 101: Wolves, Dogs, Cats, and Bears (Photo Diary)
Paleontology 101: American Mastodons at the La Brea Tar Pits
Paleontology 101: Sloths at La Brea Tar Pits
Paleontology 101: Columbian Mammoths at the La Brea Tar Pits