Download photos from the excavation site.
Significance of the Discovery
- The Snowmass Village site is one of the most significant fossil
discoveries in Colorado history.
- This discovery is very unique because there are no known sites
in Colorado, and few in North America, that contain both mammoth
and mastodon fossils in one location.
- The juvenile Columbian mammoth that was first uncovered in
October appears to be the most complete mammoth fossil found at
high elevation (8,870 feet) in Colorado. It is also the highest
elevation at which mastodons and giant ground sloths have been
found in Colorado.
- Not including the finds made in Snowmass Village, there have
been 103 mammoth discoveries and only three mastodon discoveries on
record in Colorado. There have only been four other giant ground
sloth discoveries in Colorado.
Discovery & Excavation Timeline
- Thursday, October 14
The original discovery of a single juvenile Columbian mammoth was
made by Jesse Steele, a Gould Construction Company bulldozer
operator working on the expansion of Ziegler Reservoir near
Snowmass Village. Steele and project manager Kent Olson unearthed
approximately 25 percent of the original mammoth's bones, which
were cleaned and put on display in Snowmass Village. Kit Hamby,
director of the Snowmass Water and Sanitation District, and his
team managed the initial discovery, stabilized the site, and cared
for the bones that had been collected to date.
- Monday, October 25
The Snowmass Water and Sanitation District voted unanimously to
donate the fossils to the Denver Museum of Nature &
- Wednesday, October 27
Denver Museum of Nature & Science scientists Kirk Johnson, Ian
Miller, and Steve Holen visit the Ziegler Reservoir site. While
they are there Kent Olson discovers the remains of a large fossil
initially thought to be a second mammoth. On further inspection,
this animal was identified as a mastodon.
- Friday, October 29
Holen arrived in Snowmass Village to prepare for excavation and
tour the site. After evaluating the finds to date, he confirmed
discovery of at least three mastodons in addition to the original
juvenile Columbian mammoth, plus parts of other undetermined
mammoths and/or mastodons.
- Weekend of October 30 and 31
More than 1,000 local residents viewed bones on display
at the Snowmass Water and Sanitation District offices. Meanwhile,
the team of scientists, staff and volunteers from the Museum
prepared the site for excavation, which began Tuesday, November 2.
The team created a site map which identified the areas where bones
had been discovered so far. They took samples of peat and silt from
the site which were sent for radiocarbon dating, a process that
will take 1-2 weeks. These samples will give scientists a much
better idea about the age of the bones preserved at the site. In
addition, the advance team set up a grid over the juvenile
Columbian mammoth. The grid will guide the excavation crew in
digging dig the fossil in a careful and systematic way.
- Monday, November 1
Samantha Sands, an educator with the Museum, visited students at
Glenwood Springs High School and Carbondale Middle School. As
part of the public outreach and education effort, she showed
examples of mammoth and mastodon bones from the dig site and
explained how museum scientists will study the area.
- Tuesday, November 2
Using hand tools and archaeological techniques supplemented by a
small backhoe, the Museum team opened up four of the sites that
have produced fossil bone over the last week. Over the course of
this first full day of excavation, Dr. Holen and Dr. Ian Miller,
curator of paleontology and chair of the Museum's Earth Science
Department, determined the order of sites to be excavated and
deployed teams to those sites. The field effort focused on
recovering the mammoth and mastodon bones, as well as recovering a
full assessment of the paleoecology of the site where the animals
lived and died. This involved sampling the sediment and the fossils
of plants, invertebrates such as insects and clams, and a variety
of microscopic fossils.
- Wednesday, November 3
Almost immediately after beginning work for the day, field crews
uncovered the top of a large skull. Three feet of the specimen were
exposed by a bulldozer that clipped the top of the skull. Based on
the fact that two mastodon tusks had been discovered nearby, Holen
concluded the skull was most likely a mastodon. This amazing
discovery was made by Gould employee James Hylton and Museum
volunteer Don Brandborg, a graduate of the Museum's Paleontology
Certification Program which trains citizen scientists to assist on
Museum fossil digs across the region.
- Thursday, November 4
The most significant day at the dig site yet. Excavation crews
discovered two additional species: a giant ground sloth and a small
deer-like animal. Also on Thursday, Museum scientists determined
there are two additional mastodons at the dig site after
discovering a mastodon tooth and a new leg bone in separate places.
The total number of animal species found at the dig site now totals
five: Columbian mammoth, American mastodon, Ice Age bison, giant
ground sloth, and the deer-like animal.
About the Denver Museum of Nature & Science The Denver
Museum of Nature & Science is the Rocky Mountain Region's
leading resource for informal science education. A variety of
engaging exhibits, discussions and activities help Museum visitors
celebrate and understand the natural wonders of Colorado, Earth and
the universe. The Museum is located at 2001 Colorado Blvd., Denver,
CO, 80205. To learn more about the Museum, check
www.dmns.org, or call 303-370-6000.
Many of the Museum's educational programs and exhibits are
made possible in part by generous funding from the citizens of
the seven-county metro area through the Scientific & Cultural