The Los Angeles Times describes the paleontological treasure chest that is the La Brea area and a groundbreaking (har har) archaeological technique necessitated by the need to move forward with a construction project. Wiki photo.
Her solution (Robin Turner, founder of ArchaeoPaleo Resource Management Inc. of Culver City) was a process similar to that used to move large living
trees. Carefully identifying the edges of each deposit, her team dug
trenches around and underneath them, isolating the deposits on dirt
pedestals. After wrapping heavy plastic around the deposits, workers
built wooden crates similar to tree boxes and lifted them out
individually with a heavy crane. The biggest one weighed 123,000 pounds. ...
The team also has begun digging through the largest crate but has so far excavated only an area about 6 feet by 4 feet and about 2 1/2 feet deep. From that small area, they have so far removed a complete saber-tooth cat skeleton, six dire-wolf skulls and bones from two other saber-tooth cats, a giant ground sloth, and a North American lion. The tar has yielded more than 700 individual plant and animal specimens.
And a nearly intact mammoth they named Zed.
Comments