A groundbreaking new study sheds light on the dietary patterns of the Clovis people—ancient ancestors of Native Americans—revealing that they primarily consumed mammoth meat alongside other large game. These findings, published in the journal Science Advances, provide the most direct evidence yet of how these Ice Age inhabitants sustained themselves and ultimately spread across the Americas.
Uncovering a 13,000-Year-Old Diet
The key to this discovery comes from the skeletal remains of an 18-month-old child buried around 13,000 years ago near Wilsall, Montana. Since the infant was still nursing, researchers were able to infer the mother’s diet by analyzing the chemical signatures preserved in the child’s remains. This stable isotope analysis allowed the team of American and Canadian scientists to pinpoint the foods the mother most likely ate.
A Mammoth-Centered Menu
The results were striking: approximately 35% of her diet consisted of mammoth meat. In addition, she consumed significant amounts of elk, bison, and camel. In contrast, her intake of small mammals and plants was found to be negligible, challenging the notion that the Clovis people relied heavily on a wide range of food sources.
“These findings make the Clovis people more real to me,” said co-lead author James Chatters of McMaster University in Ontario during a press briefing. “They’re no longer just artifacts and animal bones. They’ve become individuals I can imagine interacting with.”
Explaining Rapid Migration
This strong reliance on mammoths may help explain how the Clovis culture spread so quickly throughout North and into South America. Following mammoth herds over long distances could have facilitated their rapid expansion. For archaeologists and anthropologists, this supports the idea that the Clovis were highly mobile, adaptable, and skilled hunters.
Direct Evidence for Mammoth Consumption
Before this study, most evidence for a mammoth-heavy diet among the Clovis people was indirect—based on artifacts, large butchered animal remains, or the distinctive “Clovis points” found at various archaeological sites. The new stable isotope analysis, however, provides direct chemical proof of mammoth consumption, effectively refuting arguments that the Clovis had a more varied diet including small mammals, fish, and plants.
“This new paper provides direct, rather than circumstantial, evidence that mammoths were in the Pleistocene diet,” said Gary Haynes, emeritus professor at the University of Nevada, who was not involved in the study. “It puts to rest the debate and confirms that the Clovis people heavily relied on big-game hunting.”
Implications for Mammoth Extinction
The study also hints at a possible link between human hunting and the decline of the mammoth population. According to Haynes, large mammoth kill sites often feature young animals—the easiest prey. Removing these younger generations during a period of significant climate change may have contributed to the species’ eventual extinction.
A Window into Remarkable Resilience
For Shane Doyle, executive director of Yellowstone Peoples and liaison with Native American tribes throughout the research, the findings underscore the extraordinary resilience and skill of the Clovis people. “They were determined, skilled hunters and some of the most resilient people to have ever lived on this planet,” Doyle said.
By vividly reconstructing the Clovis diet, this new study not only enriches our understanding of these ancient Americans’ way of life but also offers a valuable perspective on how human behavior, climate pressures, and large-scale hunting may shape the course of history.