Homeowner finds whole mastodon jaw under his lawn

Jessica Kwong

Published December 18, 2024 11:59pm Updated December 19, 2024 12:27am

New York State Museum and State University of New York Orange staff unearth a complete well-preserved mastodon jaw, as well as a piece of a toe bone and a rib fragment, that were discovered by a man who spotted two giant teeth while gardening at his upstate New York home, near Scotchtown, NY. (New York State Museum via AP) — A complete mastodon jaw, toe bone and rib fragment were discovered in the backyard of a home near Scotchtown, New York (Picture: AP)

A homeowner doing routine work on his backyard made a jaw-some discovery.

The owner of the home near Scotchtown, New York, found two teeth covered by the frontals of a plant on the property. Upon further🐽 digging, the r෴esident uncovered two more tooth fossils that were just inches beneath the dirt, according to the on Tuesday.

‘When I found the teeth and examined them in my hands, I knew they were something special and decided to call in the experts,’ said the homeowner🦩, whose identity was not revealed.

Museum and Orange County Community College (SUNY Orange) staff led an ex🍸cavation effort and unearthed a complete and well-preserved adult mastodon jaw, and a rib fragment and toe bon✃e on top of that.

Mastodon, proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus Mammuthus, late Miocene to the Pleistocene. Colour printed illustration after Heinrich Harder from Wilhelm Bolsche's Tiere der Urwelt (Animals of the Prehistoric World), Reichardt Cocoa company, Hamburg, 1908. Heinrich Harder (1858-1935) was a German landscape artist and book illustrator. (Photo by: Florilegius/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) — Mastodon are extinct mammals of the elephant family (Picture: Florilegius)

It is the first whole mast✃odon jaw🌌 to be discovered in the Empire State in 11 years.

‘While the jaw is the star of the show, the additional toe and rib fragments offer valuabꦗle context 🃏and the potential for additional research,’ stated Dr Cory Harris, who is chair of SUNY Orange’s behavioral sciences department.

The team is planning to scour the surrounding area for any more parts of the prehistoric animal linked to elephants.

‘This mastodon jaw provides a unique op𒁃portunity to study the ecology of this mag💝nificent species, which will enhance our understanding of the Ice Age ecosystems from this region,’ stated Dr Robert Feranec, the museum’s Ice Age animals curator and research and collections director.

Researchers will conduct carbon dating to analyze the creature’s a🥂ge, diet and habitat, and the bones will then be integrated into public 🌄programming next year.

More than ♑150 mastodon fossil have been found statewide, with one-third of them in Orange County.

As the oldest and largest public museum in the US, the institution employs archaeologists, anthropologists, scieౠntists and historians who have maintained more than 20million artifacts dating back 480million years.

‘This discovery highlights the Museum’s unwavering mission to empower vital scientific research that reveals the profound changes sꦏhaping our environment and inspiring actionable steps toward a more sustainable future,’ stated Michael Mastroianni, the interim deputy commissioner for cultural education.

New York State Museum and State University of New York Orange staff unearthed a complete well-preserved mastodon jaw, as well as a piece of a toe bone and a rib fragment, that were discovered by a man who spotted two giant teeth while gardening at his upstate New York home, near Scotchtown, NY. (New York State Museum via AP) — The complete mastodon jaw is the first of its kind to be uncovered in New York in 11 years (Picture: AP)

Members of the public💃 are 🐠encouraged to report any findings they believe may belong to ancient species.

The eagle-eyed homeowner said: ‘I’m thrilled that 𒈔our property haꦜs yielded such an important find for the scientific community.’

It happened more than two-and-a-half years after a construction worker on the job at an Iowa community college discovered an 11-pound woolly mammoth tooth while excavating at the site.

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