Farmer Discovers Woolly Mammoth Bones in His Soy Field

Many of us had a childhood fantasy of becoming paleontologists and discovering extinct creatures’ remnants in foreign locations. Films like Jurassic Park have stirred our imaginations. What if, though, something unusual was found in your backyard? That’s precisely what happened to Chelsea, Michigan, farmer James Bristle and his friend when they went to look at a recently purchased piece of land.

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James dug in the ground and initially believed he had uncovered an old fence post, but on closer inspection, he saw it was bone! He was so interested that he enlisted the aid of specialists from the University of Michigan, including famous paleontologist and director of the Museum of Paleontology Professor Daniel Fisher.

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The group acted swiftly and started excavating the area. To their surprise, they discovered Woolly Mammoth remnants that are thought to be roughly 11,000 years old, including a skull, tusks, mouth, shoulder blades, and vertebrae. According to Fisher, this particular Mammoth body was killed by Paleo-Indians, the area’s first residents, and the meat was kept in a pond as a source of emergency food.

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The timeline of human existence in this region may change due to this discovery, which offers new insight into the region’s past. Given that Mastodon remains are more frequently discovered in Michigan, Fisher, who has participated in multiple digs, claimed this is one of the few intact Mammoth skeletons he has ever seen.

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James Bristle kindly donated the bones to the University of Michigan so that they might be on display for the public to enjoy and learn from. He said that I wanted it to move to a location where more people could see it and from which we could know more about history. It is admirable that he gave the bones away rather than sell them for money.

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This remarkable discovery is proof of the treasures that may be found in our backyards and is comparable to a personal Jurassic Park. Amazingly, James Bristle decided to give the bones for additional research and public enjoyment. Visit Michigan if you ever want to view this rare piece of history on display.