In 1934
during a Civil Works Administration Project mastodon bones
were found. The skull being the largest of the artifacts,
weighs 188 pounds. The bones, estimated to be between 10,000
to 20,000 years old, include a 92-pound lower jaw, a
6-foot-long tusk, ribs and vertebrae. The site in Phillips
Park is named after these huge animals. These fossils are on
display at the visitor center along with detailed timeline of
the fossil digs and the history of the area.
How Mastodon fossils are formed:
- Some Mastodonts were
quickly buried after their death (by sinking in mud, being buried
in a sand storm, etc.).
- Over time, more and
more sediment covered the remains.
- The
parts of the animals that didn't rot (usually the harder parts
likes bones and teeth) were encased in the newly-formed
sediment.
In the right circumstances (no scavengers, quick burial, not much
weathering), parts of the animal turned into fossils over
time.
- After a long time, the
chemicals in the buried animals' bodies underwent a series of
changes. As the bone slowly decayed, water infused with minerals
seeped into the bone and replaced the chemicals in the bone with
rock-like minerals. The process of fossilization involves the
dissolving and replacement of the original minerals in the object
with other minerals (and/or permineralization, the filling up of
spaces in fossils with minerals, and/or recrystallization in which
a mineral crystal changes its form).
- This process results
in a heavy, rock-like copy of the original object - a fossil. The
fossil has the same shape as the original object, but is chemically
more like a rock! Some of the original hydroxy-apatite (a major
bone consitiuent) remains, although it is saturated with silica
(rock).
To claim this find you must:
1. Send me the answers to these question: (These Answers must
come from the sign not from online sources)
- What does Mastodon
translate into?
- Name two relatives to
this mammal?
- What is its adult
weight?
Then
also send me the answer to this question. What type of
material/substance were the bones found in and in your opinion why
was this material/substance good for preserving the bones for
10,000 years?
2.
Please visit the visitor center and take a picture with you and the
fossil head and post it to your log. If the visitor center is
closed please go to N41 44.267 W 088.17.861. This is the middle of
the dig site. Very near this spot is a structure kids are familiar
with that was built in the image of the park. Take a picture there
and post that. Or you can go to the west side of the building and
take a picture with the second sull fossil that is right against
the window.
3. Go to N41 44.141 W088 17.628 and send me the answer to What
president is mentioned on the plaque at the sculpture honoring the
dig for these fossils.
This area has a very rich history and the learning opportunities
in this park are fantastic. Please after learning about this dig
site please visit some of the other learning opportunities. Happy
Hunting.