Wild Things:
Life as We Know It
Dinosaur gangs, psychedelic fish and long-distance elephant calls
- By Amanda Bensen, Joseph Caputo, T.A. Frail, Megan Gambino and Sarah Zielinski
- Smithsonian magazine, May 2009
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(Illustration by Eric Parrish, Bailey Archive / Denver Museum of Nature & Science)
Where The Camels Roamed
University of Colorado scientists have found protein residue from the North American camel on stone tools (inset) from the Clovis era about 13,000 years ago. The sharp instruments were apparently used for butchering; the camels became extinct on the continent some 11,000 years ago (possibly because of overhunting). Traces of bear, horse and sheep proteins were also detected on stone tools at the northern Colorado cache, unearthed during a home-landscaping project.
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Comments (3)
My wife and I work at the Georgia State Archives, while there I came across an article in the May 2009 issue of the Smithsonian Magazine, the article mentioned that stone tools were found with animal proteins detected on the tools. Along with camel, bear, and sheep proteins there were horse proteins, and it was my understanding that horse's did not exist on this continent until they were brought here by the Spanish. If the horse was on this contenent when did they disappear, and could they have been used as beasts of burden by the people living in the area? I realize they were probably smaller than the burros of today and much smaller than todays horse, but just how big were they. Thank you Ben Carrigan
Posted by Ben Carrigan on November 2,2009 | 06:31 PM
what an odd fish, its just so weird.
Posted by Avery on May 11,2009 | 05:25 PM
Just another amazing thing about elephants! The more we learn, the more amazing they seem!
Posted by Denise Mathews on April 21,2009 | 12:41 AM