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Remains of the skull of one of the most interesting creatures of the Pleistocene era , the Columbian Mammoth , have been unearthed near American Falls Reservoir, Southeastern Idaho.
Experts are of the view that the mammoth was about 16 years old and lived about 70,000 to 120,000 years ago. Its habitat was a savanna-like country comprising mainly of large herbivores and predators.
A fossil hunter found the skeleton earlier this month working for the US Bureau of Reclamation. Students and Instructors from Idaho State University both worked to excavate it partially. But they had to cancel further excavation, as the rising levels of water near the reservoir made it quite difficult to even complete the excavation of the skull , so they had to complete some of their tasks while standing in water. They plan to return next summer when the reservoir drops.
Mary Thompson, Idaho Museum of Natural History collections manager and a university instructor was of the view that this would give more time to raise funds if this is a complete mammoth and definitely it would be quite substantial to go out and unearth a complete mammoth. She also stated that more bones and tusks remained in the bank that couldn’t be immediately excavated.
Workers have built a barrier to keep the fossil in place while underwater.
Rebecca McGhee
Rebecca McGhee is a valuable contributor for several publications and online platforms. Having graduates with a degree in Computer Science, her interest lies mostly in this area. Yet, she finds any tech-related topic or scientific topic is a challenge worth meeting. She enjoys turning her own research projects in worthy contributions that reach the large public. And mostly, she is grateful for all the feedback she receives from readers, as she believes it aids her in permanently improving her style of writing, beyond the scientific style she is accustomed to.
