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Mammoth Tusks, 7.5 feet around the curve

Mammoths belong to the order Proboscidea, which also includes the American Mastodon and the African and Indian Elephant. The larger species of Mammoth, which appeared about 4 MYA, became extinct about 10,000 years ago, while some of the smaller species existed until about 4,000 years ago. The specimen here is a Woolly Mammoth discovered in Alaska. The Woolly Mammoth is well studied, as several well-preserved specimens have been found; it also appears in cave paintings. The Woolly Mammoth was similar in size and height to the Indian Elephant but had a distinctive slope to its back as a result of its relatively shorter hind legs. Its long thick black hair and under-wool give rise to its name. Its tusks, which they may have used to dig through the snow to get to vegetation, measured up to 13 feet and are actually very long incisors that continued to grow throughout the Mammoth's life. Its teeth also appear to have been specially adapted to the frozen tundra, with a greater number of plates and a higher crown than the teeth of other Mammoths.

Tusks are about 3.5 inches in diameber at the base and weight about 20 pounds each.