Mammoth exhibit opens to the public at Museum of San Rafael

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Come into the Museum of the San Rafael and take a look at the new mammoth exhibit.
The Museum of the San Rafael held a Mammoth Exhibit Open House on Jan. 16. The whole family was invited, as there were activities for the children and refreshments were served. After viewing the exhibit the children were encouraged to bring coloring pages to be entered in a contest. There was also cave drawing, Mammoth drawing and continental dancing for the children.
This exhibit had on display several dinosaur skeletons including a replica of the Huntington Canyon Woolly Mammoth found in Emery County. A video showing the excavation of the Woolly Mammoth skeleton was available for those interested in learning more.
The Huntington Woolly Mammoth skeleton was found by a construction crew in Huntington Canyon, between Fairview and Huntington in 1988 at Huntington Reservoir.
Research of the remains indicated the mammoth died at a record-high elevation (9,000 feet) for the species, which is generally regarded as a plains animal. The age of this old bull was roughly 65 years, based on comparisons of dental wear in modern elephants. The Huntington mammoth was also one of the last mammoths to live in North America. The best radiocarbon date of roughly 11,220 14C years before present represents the very end of mammoth existence in the Americas.
The bones were so perfectly preserved by the bog conditions that they retained proteins; these original organic compounds were analyzed for genetic information, diet, and disease. The mammoth discovery was all the more spectacular for the preservation of a set of boluses, or round mats of partially digested vegetation from its intestinal tract, giving direct evidence of the old bull’s last meal: more than half was fir needles, a decidedly poor diet for an elephant. The cause of death remains undetermined.
Casts of this Woolly Mammoth can be found in several museums.