The woolly mammoth became extinct as a result of crippling bone disease that left them unable to fend off predators , according to startling new evidence from Russia . It was previously thought that the hairy beast simply died out from post-Ice Age climate change and being hunted to extinction by early man . But now a new theory is set to re-write the history books after the examination of more than 23,500 mammoth bones found them riddled with osteoporosis and lacking in calcium . Dr Leshchinsky , the head of the laboratory of Mesozoic and Cenozoic continental eco-systems , said : 'In some collections that we examined almost 100 per cent of the bones ( pictured ) had signs of osteoporosis ' The major mineral deficiency - which came from the impact of rising temperatures on soil and water - resulted in them breaking their limbs and spines , and left them unable to walk . In turn it meant the giant animal , which stood 10ft ( three metres ) high , eventually collapsed to the ground and could not forage for food , or flee hunters . According to the Siberian Times , the new evidence was uncovered by Dr Sergey Leshchinsky , from Tomsk State University . He spent a decade analysing bone and teeth samples from mammoths that roamed western Europe and Russia between 10,000 and 30,000 years ago . Until now it was thought that the woolly mammoth simply died out from post-Ice Age climate change and being hunted to extinction by early man ( analysis of bones at mammoth 'graveyard ' pictured ) One mammoth graveyard where many bones have been found is in Lugovskoe , Russia . Shown is a young mammoth jaw riddled with bone disease . According to the Siberian Times , the new evidence was uncovered by Dr Sergey Leshchinsky , from Tomsk State University . The deficiency in calcium - which came from the impact of rising temperatures on soil and water - resulted in mammoths breaking their bones ( example pictured ) limbs and spines , leaving them unable to walk . Since the 1700s scientists have debated what caused the demise of mammoths . All but a few isolated island populations disappeared between 20,000 and 10,000 years ago . One popular theory , bolstered by this study , is that Ice Age people hunted most of the mammoths out of existence . However , some experts argue that global warming helped make the giant creatures extinct between 20,000 and 25,000 years ago . Other researchers argue that an impact of extraterritorial objects in North America 13,000 years ago , led to rapid climate change , eventually wiping out the mammoths . Today , it 's thought that a combination of factors led to extinction . But now a new theory - osteoperosis - might need to be added to the list . Dr Leshchinsky , the head of the laboratory of Mesozoic and Cenozoic continental eco-systems , said : 'In some collections that we examined , almost 100 per cent of the bones had signs of osteoporosis . 'Obviously , this led to a high traumatism among animals , such as sprains and fractures because of the smallest loads . 'Mammoths with damaged limbs or spines could not find food in sufficient quantities and lost the ability to follow the herd . 'Those who lagged behind the herd quickly became the prey of predators . ' Roughly the same size as a modern African elephant , the woolly mammoth is widely thought to have become extinct as a direct result of climate change . Most experts say warming temperatures - twinned with rising sea levels - following the last Ice Age all but wiped out their traditional habitats about 20,000 years ago . However , others say they lived long past this era and were finally hunted to death by early humans , with remains found in the Russian Arctic showing they existed just 3,700 years ago . Now the scientific world will be excited by the emerging evidence that bone disease , and a chronic lack of calcium , could instead be to blame . Shown left and right are mammoth statues in Khanty-Mansiysk . The research , if proven true , would provide a somewhat unusual explanation for how woolly mammoths died out . Experts spent a decade analysing bone and teeth samples from mammoths ( 'graveyard ' pictured ) that roamed western Europe and Russia between 10,000 and 30,000 years ago . Dr Leshchinsky , who wrote about his findings in the Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences journal , added : 'The articular surfaces of the limb bones in some specimens were not just damaged , they were mutilated with disease . 'The most typical signs were osteoporosis , osteofibrosis , osteomalacia , osteolysis , cartilage atrophy and fractures resulting in the formation of false joints , ulcers and friction grooves . ' The palaeontologist said that in his opinion the cause of the deaths was a metabolic disorder caused by mineral starvation . It is thought that mammoths did try to make up for their calcium shortfall by eating clay on the waterfronts or in mud baths , but it was not in sufficient quantities to strengthen bones . Often dubbed the 'old person 's disease ' in humans osteoporosis is a condition that weakens bones and makes them fragile and more likely to break . It affects about three million people in the UK and one in 10 receives hospital treatment for fractures from falling down .
Mammoth bones found in Russia suggest new theory for their demise . A major mineral deficiency was found in the 23,500-year-old bones . Suggest mammoths may have been riddled with osteoporosis . Animals would have eventually collapsed to the ground under own weight .