After Disneyland it was time to head north to visit a place I waited 55 years to see- the La Brea Tar Pits. Fascinating to find this area of black bubbly viscous liquid full of millions of skeletons of long extinct animals in Los Angeles- 3 1/2 million fossils and they're still digging! Most of the species found were gone by the end of the last Ice Age. The bones were anywhere from 11,000-50,000 years in age. Coyotes, though, kept going and horses found here were introduced from Europe. No dinosaurs have been found. The La Brea Tar Pits is one of the greatest finds in history. And I'm so so happy I was able to wander the museum and the grounds.
Critters found in the pits include:
(*- extinct)
*American mastodon (Mammut americanum)
*Columbian mammoth (Mammuthus columbi)
*Saber-toothed cats (Smilodon fatalis, S. f. brevipes, Homotherium serum)- 2nd most common
*American lion (Panthera atrox)
*Giant jaguar (Panthera onca augusta)
Cougar (Puma concolor)
Bobcat (Lynx rufus)
*Jefferson's ground sloth (Megalonyx jeffersonii)
*Shasta ground sloth (Nothrotheriops shastensis)
*Harlan's ground sloth (Paramylodon harlani)
*Short-faced bear (Arctodus simus)
Black bear (Ursus americanus)
Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis)
Western & Mexican horses
Coyote (Canis latrans)- 3rd most common
*Dire wolves (Canis dirus)- most common
Gray wolf (Canis lupus)
Gray fox (Orocyon cinereoargenteus)
domestic dog (Canis familiaris)
*Ancient bison (Bison antiquis)
*Long-horned bison (Bison latifrons)
Domestic sheep (Ovus aries)
*Yesterday's camels (Camelops hesternus)
*Large-headed llama (Hemiauchenia macrocephala)
*California tapir (Tapirus californicus)
*Flat-headed peccaries (Platygonus cf. P. compressus)
Mule (Odocoileus cf. O.hemionus) & Red (Cervus cf. C. elaphus) deer
*Dwarf pronghorn (Capromeryx minor) and Pronghorn (Antilocarpa americana)
Long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata), American badger (Taxidea taxus), Spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius), Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis)
Raccoon (Procyon lotor) and Ringtail (Bassariscus astutus)
Shrews, moles, bats, rabbits, squirrels, gophers, kangaroo rats, voles, mice, woodrats
Numerous insects, mollusks, reptiles, amphibians, birds and plants
Over 660 species of organisms have been found including one 18-25 year old female partial human skeleton, murdered 9,000 years ago.
All of these animals suffered a slow suffocation once caught in the mire. Predators taking advantage of trapped prey- only to find themselves sucked in. The area is considered a "carnivore trap" because there were so many found. 90% of the critters found have been carnivores. Most of the bird skeletons found were turkeys. Sad, yet it's part of the natural order.
The Chumash and Tongva tribes used the black sticky stuff to seal boats and utensils. A 1769 Franciscan friar stumbled upon the pits. Then in 1901 the first bones were noticed. They were ground sloths. In
1963 it was designated a National Natural Landmark. Now a museum holds the skeletons with laboratory for the tedious work of cleaning bones, and storage.
The "tar" is actually pools of asphalt that seeps up from a natural petroleum spring beneath Los Angeles. Back in the day the area was surrounded by palm trees; now acres of developments. Bubbling methane can still be seen especially after a rain. There lime green cones around the park marking areas where the "tar" was emerging. My friends easily talked me into being silly (see photo).
Resource: The La Brea Tar Pits: the history and legacy of one of the world's most famous fossil sites. Charles Rivers, editors
