The woolly mammoths and other ice age creatures such as the woolly rhinos roamed the Earth for much longer periods than earlier thought, says findings of a 10-year research project. CNN reports that the creatures co-existed with humans for thousands of years and the researchers were able to pinpoint their era of existence by analysing hundreds of samples of permafrost and sediment from frozen lakes of Siberia, Alaska, Canada and Scandinavia.

Mammoths were around even after the Giza pyramid’s construction

In contrast to the documented evidence, this new study has revealed that the mammoths inhabited mainland Siberia 3,900 years ago, that is after the construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt and the erection of the megaliths of Stonehenge. Previous documents have suggested that the woolly giants were wiped away from this planet about 10,000 years ago and only a few were left in the remote islands around Siberia. On the other hand, woolly rhinos are said to have survived for as long as 9,800 years ago in the Arctic whereas previous studies claim their extinction to have occurred 14,000 years ago. 

Tori Herridge, an evolutionary biologist who was not involved in the research, said that the study shows several dates for mammoth, woolly rhino, horse and steppe bison to be substantially younger than their fossil record indicates. 

“I am very excited to see how this work develops, and what new data might arise to support or refute this. I am sure it will come under intense scrutiny,” she added according to CNN.

The researchers have now resorted to a new technique to analyse, date and sequence a DNA sample which is by extracting the DNA from the soil. All creatures including humans are known to shed their DNA every now and then through various activities and the same DNA can get preserved in the soil for thousands of years, especially in frozen areas.

Meanwhile, another DNA research about Mammoths published in the journal Nature suggested that the extinction of the woolly creatures might not have entirely been due to hunting by humans. It revealed that the mammoths might not have been able to cope with changing climate, which made their specific vegetation scarce in the regions they inhabited. 

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