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2d ago

Exceptional Pacific Mastodon Molar Found in San Mateo County Preserve

The tooth has been donated to Stanford for radiocarbon dating and 3D scanning to support research and public education.

A mastodon’s tooth was recently found in a creek in San Mateo County, Calif.
The mastodon molar was donated to Stanford University in California.
Image
An image collage containing 3 images, Image 1 shows Giant molar of a Pacific Mastodon discovered in the Bay Area, partially submerged in water, Image 2 shows Two hands hold a large, well-preserved brown and black molar from an adult Pacific Mastodon, Image 3 shows Illustration of a Pacific Mastodon and its skull with a labeled upper left molar

Overview

  • A geomorphologist, who found what looked like an “oddly shaped rock” while surveying a Midpen preserve Wednesday, identified the object as an intact fossil molar from an adult Pacific mastodon.
  • Paleontologists confirmed the tooth is a Pacific mastodon (Mammut pacificus) molar and called it exceptionally well preserved, with one expert saying it is the most complete local mastodon molar they have seen.
  • Midpen donated the specimen to Stanford’s Doerr School of Sustainability, where researchers will perform radiocarbon dating to determine its age and create a 3D scan and printed replicas for outreach.
  • Midpen is not disclosing the exact creek-bed location to discourage amateur digging, and officials say the find came during a survey for habitat work aimed at the threatened California red-legged frog.
  • The discovery links routine conservation work to paleontology and could help refine knowledge of Ice Age ecosystems in the western U.S., noting that Pacific mastodons were distinguished as a separate species in 2019 and went extinct around the end of the Pleistocene.