Images of Waco Mammoth National Monument – Central Texas, taken in August 2016.

Waco Mammoth National Monument is one of the newest additions to the national park system and was celebrating its one year anniversary during my visit. The park is run by the National Park Service in conjunction with Baylor University and the city of Waco.

This is the site of the largest collection of Columbian Mammoths that died in a single flooding event and the only known nursery herd in North America. The Columbian Mammoth was taller and heavier than the Wooly Mammoth which is a distant relative.

Currently 24 mammoths have been discovered at this site with the majority being females and juveniles; however, one male was discovered with a juvenile positioned across its tusks indicating that he may have been trying to lift the young mammoth to safety at the time they were both killed.