Mammoths were abundant in North America during the early ice age but declined as the glacial period intensified. They, along with other large animals, were affected by migrations forced by advancing and retreating ice. Unlike mastodons, which stayed near forests, mammoths preferred open prairies and ranged from Mexico to Canada. The Siberian mammoth developed a woolly coat to adapt to the cold. While mastodons survived longer before being hunted to extinction by early humans, mammoths faced drastic environmental changes that contributed to their decline. [1]