Prehistoric fossil bones that are up to 45 million years old were found at a Southern California construction site.
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that → find → site
Construction workers were doing a routine excavation when they came across several fossils roughly 12 feet under the surface on August 31.
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they → do → August
They were digging into a sedimentary rock called the Santiago Formation, which is rich with fossils.
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which → dig → fossils
Paleontologist Joseph El Adli believes the bones belong to a member of the Perissodactyla family, an odd-toed hoofed mammal.
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bones → believe → family
More specifically, either a Brontotheriidae, which is known as a 'thunder beast,' or an amynodon, a 'swamp rhino.
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which → know → beast
The two extinct animals lived in North America during the Uintan North American Land Mammal Age.
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animals → live → Age
Workers found several bones, including limbs, ribs, and other fragments, the City of Oceanside said in a statement.
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City → find → statement
El Adli's team immediately secured the area after the discovery and began the process of recovering them from the sediment, which took 10 days, he told The Los Angeles Times.
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he → secure → Times
It took scientists longer than usual to extract the bones as they were buried in six feet of hard mudstone.
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they → take → mudstone
Construction workers in Southern California discovered fossil bones that are up to 45 million years old on August 31
They were digging into a sedimentary rock called the Santiago Formation when the bones were found.
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bones → discover → rock
Bones, including limbs, ribs, and other fragments, were extracted from the site
They then encased the bones in a plaster field jacket to safely transport it to a facility in Carlsbad for further study.
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They → include → study
The fossils will eventually be taken out of their jackets and carefully removed from the rock they are still embedded in.
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they → take → rock
The bones will be hardened and stabilized with museum-grade glues and resins for long-term preservation.
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bones → harden → preservation
After the bones are fully removed from the rocks, they will undergo further evaluation to determine the exact species of animal it belongs to.
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it → remove → animal
Afterward, the bones will likely end up in a museum collection, the City of Oceanside said in a statement.
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City → end → statement
The Santiago Formation has previously produced fossils from saber-toothed carnivores and primates, El Adli told The Times.
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Adli → produce → Times
He believes that more fossils could still be found on the same construction site.
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fossils → believe → site
He is hoping to find a tooth or jaw to help identify the animal, he told the outlet.
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he → hop → outlet
'It’s just sort of a hope and a prayer at this point, but that would be fantastic,' he said.
Due to California environmental laws, it is standard practice for paleontological and cultural resource monitors to be on site throughout construction in case any bones are discovered.
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bones → ’ → case
The bones have been moved to a facility in Carlsbad, where they will be extracted from the rock and studied to determine what animal it was
The bones are believed to belong to two speicies, including a Brontotheriidae, which is known as a 'thunder beast.'
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which → move → beast
It could also belong to an amynodon, a 'swamp rhino.'
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It → belong → amynodon
The City of Oceanside did not release the exact construction site as a means to avoid enthusiasts from engaging in unauthorized digging, which could be hazardous.
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which → release → digging
The Golden State has a rich history of fossil finding in the state.
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State → have → state
Over the summer, a giant tooth was found in a San Mateo County creek bed.
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tooth → find → bed
It was an intact, adult Pacific mastodon molar, scientists said.
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scientists → say → ?
The enormous, hairy relatives of today’s elephants once dominated parts of the West, roaming across California, Oregon, the northern Rocky Mountains and parts of Mexico for millions of years.
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relatives → dominate → years
Hundreds of fossils were also found under San Pedro High School in Los Angeles County while it was under construction.
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it → find → construction
The bones are believed to be nearly nine million years old.
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bones → believe → ?
Workers paused construction at the site while researchers recovered 80 percent of the massive collection, which included parts of whales and birds and teeth from saber-toothed salmon, megalodon sharks, and other fish.
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which → pause → salmon
The finding suggests that Southern California was once underwater and could reveal the possibility that there was a now-extinct island to the west of the site.
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California → suggest → site
The Aporia
