THE MAMMOTH. 57 



It has been suggested that the mammoth, with its con- 

 temporary, wooly-haired rhinoceros {R. tichorrhiims), was 

 migratory in its habits, wandering towards the north in 

 summer, and southward during the winter. This is true 

 of the musk-ox. It annually deserts its winter quarters 

 in the south, and crossing the sea upon the ice, grazes for 

 four months, from May to September, on the rich pastur- 

 age of Mellville Island. 



Taking the view that the climate of Siberia was at that 

 time very cold, the question must arise how could these 

 animals have been supplied with enough food, for it is evi- 

 dent that the cold would interfere with the growth of trees, 

 and as the remains of the animals surpass all calculation, 

 an abundance of food would be required ? It is a remark- 

 able fact that the southern part of Africa, from the tropic 

 of Capricorn to the Cape of Good Hope, although sterile 

 and desert, yet is noted for the number and bulk of its 

 quadrupeds,vi z : the elephant, five species of rhinoceros, 

 the hippopotamus, the giraffe, the ox (Bos Caffer), the 

 eland, the quagga, two species of gnu, two species of ze- 

 bra, besides several of antelopes. In one day's march, 

 through this country, in lat. 2-4° S., through a tract thinly 

 covered with grass, bushes, and trees, there were seen one 

 hundred and fifty rhinoceroses, several herds of giraifes, and 

 many hippopotami. This phenomenon is explained by sup- 

 posing that the underwood, of which the food of some 

 chiefly consists, contains much nutriment in a small bulk, 

 and a-lso from the fact that no sooner is a part consumed 

 than its place is supplied by a fresh stock. Then, again, 

 the quantity of food required by the larger herbivora is 

 much less than is generally imagined. But making every 

 allowance for all this, and many other considerations, yet 

 it would be impossible for the vast numbers of mam- 

 moths, and other animals, to subsist throughout the year 

 in southern Siberia, covered as it is with snow in winter. 



