The woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) was a large, extinct relative of modern elephants that lived during the Ice Age.

Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Proboscidea

Family: Elephantidae

Genus: Mammuthus

Species: M. primigenius

Key Features

Thick fur for cold climates

Long, curved tusks used for digging snow and protection

A fat hump on its back to store energy

Smaller ears than modern elephants to reduce heat loss

Habitat

Lived in the cold, grassy plains of Europe, northern Asia, and North America known as the "mammoth steppe."

Diet

Herbivorous, feeding on grasses, shrubs, mosses, and other Ice Age plants.

Extinction

Disappeared around 4,000 years ago, likely because of climate change and overhunting by humans.

Fossils

Frozen bodies found in Siberia preserved skin, hair, and even DNA, helping scientists study them in detail.