Mastodon tusk reveals life of roaming

Chemical signatures inscribed in an ancient tusk tell a mastodon’s life story — from his adolescent years to his premature death around 13,200 years ago. Researchers matched the chemical signatures in the tusks of an American mastodon (Mammut americanum) with those from his home range in what is now Indiana. They found that, as an adult, he travelled to mastodon mating grounds every year in the spring and summer. It was there, at 34 years of age, that he met his end, probably from a skull puncture during a battle with another bull.