Crane Worker Finds Gnarly Mammoth Tooth at Central Station Construction Site
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| Transbay Joint Powers Authority |
| Obviously, an avid flosser |
Crane operator Brandon Valasik was excavating at the east end of the Transbay Transit Center site in downtown when he made the toothy find.
Experts have confirmed that the tooth comes from a Columbian Mammoth -- a relative of the modern day elephant that lived in the Bay Area during the Pleistocene epoch. They are still trying to confirm that they also found a jaw belonging to the historic beast.
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| Mauricio Antón/Wikipedia |
| Nice teeth |
Apparently, this mammoth had some nice chops, as paleontology consultants say the tooth had "nicely preserved enamel ridges" on both the side and the top, making it easier for researchers to learn more about the Pleistocene and the overall evolutionary process of extinct organisms.
The kind folks over at the Transbay Joint Power Authority are planning to donate the tooth to the California Academy of Sciences; there 's also some talk about putting the relic on public exhibition.
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