"For example, we have evidence of tusks stabbing into the vertebral column, penetrating the space traversed by the spinal cord, from a direction that implies the victim was already lying on his side on the ground; in other words, the violence went on, even after one animal was down," Fisher said.
Other fossils suggest some of the animals were butchered in autumn — likely by humans, who may have caused or contributed to the extinction of mastodons 11,000 years ago.
Jeffrey Saunders, curator and chair of geology at the Illinois State Museum, told Discovery News that he has excavated over 72 mastodons.
"I always viewed them as being rather passive animals because I never found many broken bones — maybe one or two broken ribs — but I greatly respect Dr. Fisher's work and I continue to be open-minded about the possibilities," he said.
Saunders, who once found himself between two fighting bull male elephants while in a small jeep, added, "I also think it's interesting that similarities between mastodons and modern elephants seem to persist, given that these animals parted evolutionary ways 40 million years ago. The basic elephant design must be successful to have persisted so long."
