The new study “ How do you kill 86 mammoths ? Taphonomic investigations of mammoth megasites ” proposes that one potential way for early humankind to kill mammoths was with the origin of what would become man ’s best booster .
In the study , anthropologist Pat Shipman investigates constitution of mammoth remain “ megasites ” — area with remains number from five into the hundreds — and the two hypotheses for their creation : early world scavenged the bones of natural Death or that the hunting of mammoths by humans create the megasites .
The study compared the patterns of the deaths of these mammoths to the pattern found in the deaths of advanced elephants . What it found was that the mammoth site did n’t match the patterns for either natural deaths from drouth or from human culling of entire herds . Which implied to Shipman that other humans had prepare and used some technique for kill mammoth .

However , Shipman notes that none of the sites show signs of humans using tools to shoot down the mammoth :
No lithic collection include new tool type that have been hint to be designed for killing mammoth . Bones show scarce mark of carnivore activity and human modification ( normally < 5 % of the gigantic bone have such evidence ) . The human modifications take the form of cutmarks , filleting marks , skinning target , disarticulation marks , fracturing of long bones for marrow , and/or shaping of bone as tools . Some site also let in architectural structures such as mammoth bone huts , refuse dumps or pits , post hole , and hearths . There is no grounds of cavity hole or drive lanes .
Therefore , Shipman hypothesizes that there were two thing that worked together to make the hunting of mammoth possible : “ complex projectile engineering science ” and an “ unprecedented alliance between domesticated or partly domesticated canine and humans . ” In other speech : aloofness weapon and wiener .

Shipman explain ina statementwhy humans and wolves / dog working together would help make for down mammoth :
dog help hunters find prey quicker and more often , and Canis familiaris also can beleaguer a large animal and hold it in place by rumble and charge while hunters move in . Both of these effects would increase hunt success . Furthermore , large dogs like those key by Germonpré [ at the megasites ] either can help behave the fair game home or , by guarding the carcass from other carnivores , can make it potential for the Hunter to cantonment at the killing sites .
Point for Team Dog .

Top image by Mauricio Antón / Wikimedia Commons
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