Lindsey+G.


 * HIGH ALTITUDE FIND BRINGS MAMMOTH MYSTERY **


 * On October 14, 2010, over twenty Ice Age vertebrates were unearthed in Ziegler reservoir near Snowmass, Colorado. During construction process, construction workers uncovered some bones which belonged to a young female mammoth. The construction workers turned the reservoir over to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science for a short excavation, who later found many other ancient fossils. This find is commonly referred to as the Snowmass fossil find. With these sloths, mammoths, giant bison, and other megafauna that were discovered comes many unanswered questions. **


 * I quote from Wikipedia’s Snowmastadon page, “[Snowmass fossil site] is one of the few high altitude Ice Age fossil sites”. So why was there such a great number of fossils found at the elevation of 8,373 feet? **


 * The Pleistocene era, which is otherwise known as the Ice Age, was the time period these ancient bones came from. During the Pleistocene era, much of the land we know today was glacierized, or covered in ice. However, some places escaped glaciation due to their high elevation. These places were rich with life and abundance in animals and plants. **


 * Scientists know that the Snowmass fossil site was indeed full of life. **


 * In fact, according to Wikipedia, “The fossils recovered exhibit remarkable preservation. The plant matter is still green and beetle exoskeletons are still iridescent.” **


 * There is a possibility that Ziegler reservoir was not covered in ice during the Pleistocene era, therefore providing vegetation for the ancient mammals that dwelled there. Also, the Snowmass fossil site was once the shore of a small glacial lake. This lake could have been formed by a melting of a glacier, or possibly just a natural water source. There was once a large amount of Ice Age animals that inhabited Colorado as well. **

** By: Lindsey G. ** ** Image URL and Attribution: ** ** [] ** ** By Charles R. Knight (http://paleo.amnh.org/artwork/knight/index.html) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons **
 * Piecing together all of this information, we can infer that ancient Ice Age animals once called the Snowmass fossil site home. Based on all of the facts, we can solve our mammoth mystery. **