Date: Tue, 21 Sep 2010 09:42:56 -0700
Subject: [LA-Rocks] Utility Company Stumbles on Trove of Fossils



The fossils found southeast of LA include a giant cat, ground sloths the
size of grizzly bears, camels and other animals KNBC-TV Los Angeles
Updated 8:30 AM PDT, Tue, Sep 21, 2010Utility workers building a new
substation in stumbled on a fossil find that researchers say could fill in
blanks in Southern California's history.

In an arid canyon southeast of Los
Angeles,
the Southern California Edison crew discovered a trove of animal fossils
dating back 1.4 million years. The well-preserved cache contains nearly
1,500 bone fragments, including a giant cat that was the ancestor of the
saber-toothed tiger, ground sloths the size of a modern-day grizzly bear,
two types of camels and more than 1,200 bones from small rodents.

Other finds include a new species of deer, horse and possibly llama,
researchers affiliated with the project said.

Workers doing grading for the substation also uncovered signs of plant life
that indicate birch, pine, sycamore, marsh reeds and oak trees once grew in
the area that is now dry and sparsely vegetated.

The fossils representing 35 species have all been removed from the site and
will be on display at the Western Science Center in nearby Hemet starting
next year.

The bones are about 1 million years older than those found in the famous La
Brea Tar Pits in
Los Angeles, said Rick
Greenwood , a
microbiologist who also is director of corporate environment health and
safety for the utility, Southern California Edison.

"If you step back, this is just a huge find," he said. "Everyone talks about
the La Brea Tar Pits, but I think this is going to be much larger in terms
of its scientific value to the research community."

Greenwood continued: "Some of the things I personally find fascinating are
the prehistoric camels and llamas and horses and deer. I don't think most
people even have the concept that those types of animals were roaming around
here more than a million years ago."

San Diego Museum of Natural History paleontologist Tom
Demeresaid the
fossil trove cannot be directly compared to the La Brea Tar Pits
because they contain different species and shed light on different eras.
Nevertheless, he said the collection could advance scientists' understanding
of life in Southern California 1.4 million years ago.

"We have a fuzzy view of what this time period was like in terms of mammal
evolution," Demere said. "A discovery like this -- when they're all found
together and in a whole range of sizes -- could really be an important
contribution."

The fossils were found in San Timoteo Canyon in a part of the ancient river
valley about 85 miles southeast of Los Angeles. The region is now arid and
dusty and shadowed by the San Bernardino Mountains to the north, but it was
lush more than a million years ago, said Philippe Lapin, an archaeologist
for the utility.



Read entire article and view accompanying pics here:

www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local-beat/Utility-Company-Stumbles-on-Fossils-103438969.html?__source=Newsletter-Daily /> --
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