Scientists hunting mammoth fossils found whales 400 km inland

In an intriguing revelation, a team of paleontologists from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, led by Matthew Wooller, encountered an unexpected twist during their research on mammoth fossils. Initially, they believed they had stumbled upon two vertebrae belonging to ancient mammoths, dating back as recently as 2,000 years ago. However, advanced DNA analysis turned this assumption on its head, uncovering that these bones actually belonged to a North Pacific right whale and a minke whale. This unexpected finding has sparked a new wave of questions and shifted the focus of the team's research. Wooller and his colleagues have been diligently searching for the last known mammoths that roamed Alaska, aiming to understand the timeline of extinction for these magnificent creatures alongside other Pleistocene megafauna. Over the last four years, they have radiocarbon-dated more than 300 mammoth fossils, carefully piecing together the puzzle of these ancient animals. Among their discoveries, two specimens stood out, indicating that mammoths had inhabited areas near Fairbanks as recently as 2,800 and 1,900 years ago. Yet, the revelation that the bones they were examining were not from mammoths at all left the researchers perplexed. In their recent publication, Wooller and his team noted the discrepancies in the radiocarbon and stable isotope data, which hinted that something was significantly amiss. The vertebral growth plates, which they initially believed were mammoth bones, were cataloged by the University of Alaska Museum of the North as originating from a site known as Dome Creek. However, further investigation by Wooller and his team suggested that these specimens likely never belonged to that location, leading to a fascinating case of mistaken identity that now includes two whale species and a mid-century fossil hunter.