A tooth of Mammuthus primigenius from Chestermere Lake near Calgary, Alberta, and the distribution of mammoths in southwestern Canada
A well-preserved molar of a woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) was recovered from deposits at Chestermere Lake near Calgary. It is probably of late Wisconsin age, and is one of several mammoth fossils collected from Pleistocene sediments in the Calgary area.The Chestermere Lake specimen is considered in relation to 94 records of mammoth cheek teeth from the western Canadian provinces. Of the 94 records, 5 are from Manitoba, 35 are from Saskatchewan, 37 are from Alberta, and 17 are from British Columbia. In addition to specimens of woolly mammoths, remains of Columbian (Mammuthus columbi), imperial (Mammuthus imperator), and southern mammoths (Mammuthus meridionalis) have been collected from Pleistocene deposits of southwestern Canada. Some problems concerning the relationships of North American and Eurasian mammoths are mentioned.