Identification and Paleoecology of Mammoth Teeth from the Vertebrate Paleontology Collection at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History, Hays, Kansas

Thirty-five mammoth teeth from the Vertebrate Paleontology Collection at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History in Hays, Kansas were examined to determine the species and paleoecological association. Quantitative and qualitative descriptions of tooth length, width, height, enamel thickness, lamellar frequency, condition, shape, and size, were determined. Thirty-four of the teeth were identified as Mammuthus columbi and one was identified as M. jeffersonii, indicating that M. columbi was the dominant mammoth cycles that resulted in cool, mesic, boreal coniferous forests and prairie (steppe) environments throughout the Pleistocene. M. columbi and M. jeffersonii would have thrived in these environments and would have been able to share these niches, as they had similar dietary preferences