As excavation nears completion on the new Thomas Jefferson School of Law Downtown campus, paleontologist Pat Sena has come up with another interesting fossil find -- possibly another prehistoric giant.
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| Pat Sena Shows his Latest Fossil Find |
It's a proximal radius - which is a bone that interfaces with the "elbow" of a mammoth or mastodon. So far, the species to which the bone belonged is unidentified.
"Every time I stick a shovel into the ground, I expect something to pop up," says Sena. "And it pretty much does."
Sena is with the San Diego Natural History Museum, and so far he has 
uncovered the prehistoric bones of a mammoth, a whale and what is believed to be a giant ground sloth - in addition to bones belonging to other Ice Age critters like ancient horses.
"I'm stunned by this project - it's amazing there are so many here," says Sena of the "fossil-rich" environment that is the TJSL construction site. "Are these fossils all over downtown, or are they just here? This area may have been a catch point."
With a few feet yet to go on the excavation and a big pile of dirt yet to be sifted through, Sena expects even more bones to pop up - possibly more of the skeleton of his latest find - whatever was connected to the proximal radius! (Or, is he just trying to "humerus?")