Monday 1 August 2022 07:42 PM Humans settled in North America 17,000 years EARLIER than previously believed, ... trends now
Bones of an adult mammoth and her calf have been uncovered at a 37,000-year-old butchering site in New Mexico, which suggest humans settled in North America 17,000 years than previously believed.
A team of scientists, led by The University of Texas at Austin, extracted collagen from the bones, allowing them to carbon date the settled age of 36,250 to 38,900 years old.
The bones were discovered in a three-foot-tall pile, with 95 percent belonging to the adult, and featured slaughter marks and fractures from blunt force impact
The discovery adds to the growing evidence that there were societies before people crossed the Bering Strait land bridge some 20,000 years ago. The bridge, also called Beringia, connected Siberia and Alaska during the last Ice Age, and allowed people to come from Asia into North America.
However, this study does not clarify where the ancient humans came from.
Previous studies have produced remains of ancient humans dating back 20,000 years ago and other artifact that suggest there were people in the area before Clovis – those who crossed the land bridge. However, the mammoth bones are the earliest evidence found to date.
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Scientists discovered a three-foot-tall pile of mammoth bones that belonged to an adult female and her calf. However, 95 percent of the bones were from the adult
Lead author Timothy Rowe said in a statement: ‘It's not a charismatic site with a beautiful skeleton laid out on its side. It's all busted up. But that's what the story is.’
The discovery was also made in Rowe’s backyard. His neighbor spotted a tusk protruding out from the ground and he quickly called a team in to help with the excavations.
Once most of the dirt was removed, the open-air butchering site was revealed that includes different areas separated by walls made of stone and clay.
The mammoth bones, both the adult and calf, were found in a pile with the adults head and tusks laid on top.
