A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia
Abstract
The Kostolac mammoth was discovered in 2009 in Pleistocene deposits adjacent to the Drmno open-cast lignite mine in the Serbian Danube Basin. On the basis of cranial and dental features, the individual is identified as the so-called 'steppe' mammoth, Mammuthus trogontherii. The remains are those of an old male of estimated age around 62 years, and comprise one of the most complete and best-preserved known skeletons of this species, and the first from the region. Skeletal height is estimated as around four metres, and body mass 9.5 t. The excellent preservation of the skeleton provides new information about the osteology of M. trogontherii, an evolutionary intermediate between the better-known ancestral mammoth Mammuthus meridionalis and woolly mammoth Mammuthus primigenius. The find is also remarkable for the articulated condition of the skeleton, the animal occupying a crouching posture which is probably little-altered from its original death position. This and the depositional enviro...nment of the skeleton, a broad, fast-flowing river, suggest that the animal died in relatively shallow water and was very rapidly buried in river sediments. Based on the known European record of typical (large-sized) M. trogontherii of this kind, the age of the Kostolac skeleton and its enclosing sediments is between 1.0 and 0.4 Ma.
Source:
Quaternary International, 2012, 276, 129-144Publisher:
- Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd, Oxford
Funding / projects:
- Bioarchaeology of Ancient Europe: People, Animals and Plants in the Prehistory of Serbia (RS-47001)
- Natural Environment Research Council and UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)[NE/J009490/1]
DOI: 10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021
ISSN: 1040-6182
WoS: 000310858800013
Scopus: 2-s2.0-84867634055
Institution/Community
Arheologija / ArchaeologyTY - JOUR AU - Lister, Adrian M. AU - Dimitrijević, Vesna AU - Marković, Zoran AU - Knežević, Slobodan AU - Mol, Dick PY - 2012 UR - http://reff.f.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/1450 AB - The Kostolac mammoth was discovered in 2009 in Pleistocene deposits adjacent to the Drmno open-cast lignite mine in the Serbian Danube Basin. On the basis of cranial and dental features, the individual is identified as the so-called 'steppe' mammoth, Mammuthus trogontherii. The remains are those of an old male of estimated age around 62 years, and comprise one of the most complete and best-preserved known skeletons of this species, and the first from the region. Skeletal height is estimated as around four metres, and body mass 9.5 t. The excellent preservation of the skeleton provides new information about the osteology of M. trogontherii, an evolutionary intermediate between the better-known ancestral mammoth Mammuthus meridionalis and woolly mammoth Mammuthus primigenius. The find is also remarkable for the articulated condition of the skeleton, the animal occupying a crouching posture which is probably little-altered from its original death position. This and the depositional environment of the skeleton, a broad, fast-flowing river, suggest that the animal died in relatively shallow water and was very rapidly buried in river sediments. Based on the known European record of typical (large-sized) M. trogontherii of this kind, the age of the Kostolac skeleton and its enclosing sediments is between 1.0 and 0.4 Ma. PB - Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd, Oxford T2 - Quaternary International T1 - A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia EP - 144 SP - 129 VL - 276 DO - 10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021 ER -
@article{ author = "Lister, Adrian M. and Dimitrijević, Vesna and Marković, Zoran and Knežević, Slobodan and Mol, Dick", year = "2012", abstract = "The Kostolac mammoth was discovered in 2009 in Pleistocene deposits adjacent to the Drmno open-cast lignite mine in the Serbian Danube Basin. On the basis of cranial and dental features, the individual is identified as the so-called 'steppe' mammoth, Mammuthus trogontherii. The remains are those of an old male of estimated age around 62 years, and comprise one of the most complete and best-preserved known skeletons of this species, and the first from the region. Skeletal height is estimated as around four metres, and body mass 9.5 t. The excellent preservation of the skeleton provides new information about the osteology of M. trogontherii, an evolutionary intermediate between the better-known ancestral mammoth Mammuthus meridionalis and woolly mammoth Mammuthus primigenius. The find is also remarkable for the articulated condition of the skeleton, the animal occupying a crouching posture which is probably little-altered from its original death position. This and the depositional environment of the skeleton, a broad, fast-flowing river, suggest that the animal died in relatively shallow water and was very rapidly buried in river sediments. Based on the known European record of typical (large-sized) M. trogontherii of this kind, the age of the Kostolac skeleton and its enclosing sediments is between 1.0 and 0.4 Ma.", publisher = "Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd, Oxford", journal = "Quaternary International", title = "A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia", pages = "144-129", volume = "276", doi = "10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021" }
Lister, A. M., Dimitrijević, V., Marković, Z., Knežević, S.,& Mol, D.. (2012). A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia. in Quaternary International Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd, Oxford., 276, 129-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021
Lister AM, Dimitrijević V, Marković Z, Knežević S, Mol D. A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia. in Quaternary International. 2012;276:129-144. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021 .
Lister, Adrian M., Dimitrijević, Vesna, Marković, Zoran, Knežević, Slobodan, Mol, Dick, "A skeleton of 'steppe' mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig)) from Drmno, near Kostolac, Serbia" in Quaternary International, 276 (2012):129-144, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.03.021 . .