In The Middle Of A Michigan Farmers’ Field, The Woolly Mammoth’s Fossil Was Found

In Michigan, while draining a field, workers digging about eight feet deep stumbled upon what appeared to be wood. However, reports from the Detroit Free Press revealed that it was actually bones they had encountered.

Initially suspecting dinosaur bones, the farmers reached out to the University of Michigan. Daniel Fisher from the university’s Museum of Paleontology was informed and upon examining the site, he concluded that the bones belonged to a mammoth, not a dinosaur.

Fisher, along with his colleague, had just one day to excavate the mammoth’s remains due to the farmers’ tight schedule. They managed to uncover the animal’s head, tusks, vertebrae, and ribs. It’s believed that the missing parts of the skeleton might have been taken by humans who possibly hunted the mammoth for food.

The Detroit Free Press has reported the discovery of around 30 mammoths in the state so far. Fisher suggested that this particular mammoth could be a Jeffersonian mammoth—a hybrid that is distinct from both the woolly and Columbian mammoths. It’s a rare and remarkable find, especially considering it was made during routine fieldwork.