Eddie Templeton found a portion of an Ice Age-era, Columbian mammoth tusk exposed in a steep embankment while exploring in Madison County.
DEQ’s Mississippi State Geological Survey scientists worked with the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science to properly excavate and stabilize the tusk.
“Mississippi was home to three Proboscideans during the last ice age: Mastodon, Gomphothere and the Columbian mammoth.
“Our field scientists interpreted the mammoth tusk specimen to be leaning up against the edge of an ancient sandbar of a stream while a portion of it rest on the floor of stream channel.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital reached out to the MDEQ and Eddie Templeton for additional comment.
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) was notified of a remarkable find that an enthusiastic fossil and artifact collector made recently.
Eddie Templeton was exploring in Madison County when he discovered a piece of an Ice Age Columbian mammoth tusk exposed in a steep embankment.
To dig and stabilize the tusk properly, DEQ scientists from the Mississippi State Geological Survey collaborated with the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science.
Ancient shopping receipts dating back thousands of years have been unearthed by archaeologists.
In order to reveal the 7-foot-long ivory fossil, Templeton and the group had to spend a full day cleaning the tusk.
Eddie and his team were suspected to be dealing with a Columbian mammoth rather than a common mastodon, due to the massive tusk’s strong curvature. According to an MDEQ press release, this would be the first of its kind for the region.
The tusk was verified by paleontologists at the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science to be that of a mammoth.
“During the last ice age, three Proboscideans called Mastodon, Gomphothere, and the Columbian mammoth called Mississippi home. The tusks of all three were made of ivory. Because they were browsers and lived in a range of environments similar to those of modern deer, mastodons are by far the most common Proboscidean finds in Mississippi, according to the release.
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The MDEQ states that wooly mammoths, which lived in the colder, northern parts of North America, were smaller than Columbian mammoths, reaching heights of up to 15 feet and weights exceeding 10 tons.
Just as their contemporary elephant relatives do in other parts of the world, these enormous mammals were crucial to the upkeep of the rich, fertile prairie ecosystem. Along with giant ground sloths, giant tortoises, tapirs, and herds of now-extinct horses, the ice-age prairie ecosystem of what is now Madison County was also home to these animals, according to the release.
To learn more about the animal, scientists covered the fossil with burlap and aluminum foil to create a plaster jacket.
The specimen of mammoth tusk was found to be partially resting on the floor of the stream channel and leaning against the edge of an old stream sandbar, according to our field scientists. “.
This would have been shortly before alluvium encased the fossil, presumably as a result of a storm that caused significant flooding, according to the release.
The animal was determined to have most likely passed away close by, and its remains were subsequently washed down the stream’s course.
According to the release, “Eddie’s discovery offers a rare window into the Columbian mammoths that once roamed Madison County along the Jackson Prairie of central Mississippi.”.
For more information, Fox News Digital contacted Eddie Templeton and the MDEQ.
