Posted on 04/07/2005 9:28:36 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
MOORPARK, Calif. - The remarkably well-preserved remnants of an estimated half-million-year-old mammoth - including both tusks - were discovered at a new housing development in Southern California.
An onsite paleontologist found the remains, which include 50 percent to 70 percent of the Ice Age creature, as crews cleared away hillsides to prepare for building, Mayor Pro Tem Clint Harper said.
Paleontologist Mark Roeder estimated the mammoth was about 12 feet tall, Harper said. Roeder believed it was not a pygmy or imperial mammoth, but he had not yet determined its exact type, Harper said.
"It's considered a very significant find, and it's a very complete fossil. It's unusual because it was found all the way down near the bedrock," Harper said. "We asked if carbon dating could be used and they said no way, it's too old."
Harper said the first bones were spotted several days ago and a special crew was called in after Roeder found more remnants, including the 6- and 7-foot-long tusks.
"They've been encased in plaster and burlap and removed from the site," Harper said.
Moorpark in Ventura County is about 30 miles west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
"The Moorpark mammoth, that's what we'll call it," Harper said.
Other Ice Age creatures have been found in recent years around Southern California, including a mastodon in Simi Valley, a mammoth in Oceanside and a pygmy mammoth on the Channel Islands.
In this photo released by Keith Millhouse, an unidentified paleontologist uses a brush to excavate the bones of what is believed to be an imperial mammoth on Thursday afternoon, April 7, 2005, at a construction site in Moorpark, Calif. The skeleton is believed to be about 12 feet tall with eight-foot tusks. It appears nearly complete. (AP Photo/Keith Millhouse)
Oh, I thought someone buried Michael Moore.
;-)
"An onsite paleontologist found the remains," ..
Good question on cost,, heavy machinery and operators aren't cheap, especially if they are just sitting there, idle.,, and paleontologists and specialists need to eat to. ;-)
altho the area is a recognized hot bed so to speak.. so they were on top of it pretty quick..
ping
*snrk* They unearthed people when they built the office space across the street from where I used to work. They were re-interred in the lawn by a 'most likely descendant'...
I wonder if his services are required by the Coastal Commission? or just part of a preservation of antiquities clause in the contract or such?
But how will it taste?
A great Northern Exposure episode come to mind.
If they are clever, they might be able to recoup their costs in speaking fees, interview fees, movie options, etc. Besides, I don't know the law, but it's a possibility that legally, they now own a mammoth!
Not sure about mammoths in LaBrea, plenty of other prey animals, along with sabertooth cats which were attracted by what seemed to be easy prey.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest -- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
ah, here we go... some mammoths and mastodons, but mostly other stuff so far:
http://www.tarpits.org/research/pit91/pitfacts.html
The most common animal fossils that have been excavated from the La Brea Tar Pits are dire wolves (more than 3,000 found) and California's official state fossil, the saber-toothed cat (more than 2,000 found). Other fossils include mammoths and mastodons, ground sloths, camel, short-faced bears, horses, bison and birds. Since Page Museum paleontologists and volunteers began excavating Pit 91 in 1915, more than 250,000 fossils have been recovered. Over 650 different species of animals and plants have been recovered from the tar pits. Of these, most of the fossil plants, insects, snails and small mammals have come from Pit 91.
http://www.tarpits.org/research/mamtooth.html
Mammoth Tooth Replacement
Mammoths, like elephants, grew their teeth in a process much like a conveyor belt. As one tooth was being used and worn, the next was forming and was ready when needed, right behind the one being used. In the case of this fossil from a Columbian mammoth (Mammuthus columbi) discovered in Pit 9, one can easily see the replacement tooth still forming in the jaw behind the existing tooth.
http://www.paleodirect.com/lm8-009.htm
"Truly HIGH quality mammoth tusks from the North Sea are infinitely more rare than mammoth tusks from the Siberian tundra (Russia). Most North Sea mammoth fossils are so badly eaten up and rotted by the harsh elements of the salt water. They exist on and below the ocean floor and are often accidentally brought up in fishing nets, sustaining even further damage and breakage. On the contrary, mammoth fossils in Russia, like most Pleistocene Russian fossils, are found in the ground in massive bone beds that extend for considerable distances. These fossils are blasted out of the tundra with water cannons and so many are found that woolly mammoth tusks are a commodity and sold by the pound at fossil shows! The nature of their burial and method in which they are extracted has produced vast quantities of exceptionally preserved woolly mammoth teeth, bones, tusks, etc. so much so, that it seems like supply is inexhaustible with each year bringing a greater flood of these Russian specimens."
From KFI in L.A.'s reporting this one dwarfs anything from the Tar Pits and, I think, is more complete. There's also word of a possibility this is a NEW species of Mammoth.
More from NBC:
'Moorpark Mammoth' Uncovered On Housing Site
Crews Halt Construction After Find
April 7, 2005
LOS ANGELES -- Crews have halted construction at a housing site after uncovering the remains of what appears to be a mammoth.
The 350-acre site in Moorpark is west of Walnut Canyon Road south of Championship.
Crews were grading the site for 250 homes when they found the skeleton. They called a paleontologist, who is continuing an examination Thursday night.
Officials said the remains will be taken to the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles. Crew members said removal might take about one week.
The skeleton is about 12 feet tall with 8-foot tusks.
The extinct Pleistocene elephants had ridged, large molars and long tusks that curved upward. They also had body hair.
The skeleton in Moorpark is 50- to 70-percent complete. Paleontologist Mark Roeder estimated the find was a a half-million years old.
"It's considered a very significant find, and it's a very complete fossil," said Mayor Pro Tem Clint Harper. "It's unusual because it was found all the way down near the bedrock. We asked if carbon dating could be used and they said, 'No way. It's too old'"
The first bones were discovered last week. A special crew was called after the discovery of tusks.
"They've been encased in plaster and burlap and removed from the site," Harper said. "There's a lot of concern that when the site becomes well known there'll be vandalism."
The discovery was made less than two miles north of City Hall in Moorpark, a Ventura County community about 30 miles west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
"The Moorpark mammoth, that's what we'll call it," Harper said.
Roeder told Harper and other city officials who visited the find site Thursday afternoon that it was unlikely remains of another mammoth would be found nearby.
The development by William Lyon Homes at the Meridian Hills site will not be slowed much by the discovery. The mammoth remains were being removed quickly to allow earth-moving equipment to continue working, Harper said.
Other Ice Age creatures have been found in recent years around Southern California, including a mastodon in Simi Valley, a mammoth in Oceanside and a pygmy mammoth on the Channel Islands.
Calls to the developer's office after business hours Thursday were not immediately returned and the onsite paleontologist also could not immediately be reached for comment.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.