Wherever remains are found of the large herbivores of the mammoth steppe, remains are also found of large predators such as bears, wolves, lions and hyenas. Predator fossils are rare, though. Teeth of predators are easy to  recognize because they are adapted for tearing flesh. Skeletal parts are much more difficult to recognize. However, evidence of predators can be inferred from the characteristic gnaw-marks on the bones of their prey.

Cave Hyena

The cave hyena was a widespread and common predator whose teeth often left deep cuts in the spongy bones of his prey. Cave hyenas fed on the meat and bones of woolly mammoths and woolly rhinos. As a result, hyenas produced hard, chalky droppings, which are sometimes found petrified amongst the other fossils. These are called coprolites-fossilized dung.