Mammoth (Mammuthus) of probable last interglacial age from southwestern Minnesota, USA

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

We report on a fragmented skull with molars and tusks of a mammoth ( Mammuthus) from southwesternmost Minnesota. Surficial deposits in this corner of the state show that the area was ice-free between the Wisconsinan-age Des Moines Lobe and the James Lobe immediately to the west in South Dakota. Here, we report on the Late Pleistocene age mammoth from a new locality, the Chapman Mammoth Locality, within this interlobe area. We propose that the Chapman mammoth dates to the Sangamonian Interglacial (MIS 5a–e; “Sangamon Complex”; 128–75 ka) based on geological context. Given the available measurements of the Chapman molars and tusks as compared to other morphometric data on mammoths from around the continent, we cautiously identify the specimen as a large, older individual that belongs to Mammuthus columbi, the Columbian mammoth, or possibly Mammuthus jeffersonii, Jefferson's mammoth. Although mammoths are known from Minnesota, detailed morphological or chronological data have been presented in the literature for only a few. The Chapman Mammoth remains put a premium on better understanding the Sangamonian Interglacial fauna and flora of Minnesota.