jjares reviewed The La Brea Tar Pits: The History and Legacy of One of the World?s Most Famous Fossil Sites on + 3294 more book reviews
Oh, my goodness, this is one of the best books I've read all year! I've been by the La Brea tar pits in Los Angeles, but had no idea how much history was in its murky depths. This book is so good that I just have to follow up with more information. This story tells how the pits were just part of the historical framework of some Indian tribes (science now shows that those Indians were negatively impacted by living so close to the pits).
The pits were 'silent death traps' where animals, insects, and flora got too close and were ensnared in the sticky tar. The book calls it a 'natural cycle of death and despair. Naturally, there are a variety of theories about these pits and the book takes the reader through the most likely ones. The feeling is that the pits formed about 35,000-40,000 years ago.
There are several photos that add so much to the information offered in the book. The pits had a complicated history until someone finally understood what they were and began to find fossils and artifacts. The story of how people excavated the pits and what they found is absolutely astounding. The picture of the Columbian mammoth found in the tar pits is wow. I believe that so far, the pit has released 750,000 animal, insect, and flora to be studied.
Learn how scientists have altered their beliefs about many things because of what they have learned from the animals emerging from the pits. I knew that camels were once indigenous to North America, but had died out centuries ago. However, in the fossil site, they brought out two distinct species of camels. Only one human was extracted from La Brea -- an Indian woman, along with a tamed dog beside her.
Lest you think that this is a charming little morsel for a science major, guess again. I can hardly spell science and I found this morsel delicious. Enjoy.
The pits were 'silent death traps' where animals, insects, and flora got too close and were ensnared in the sticky tar. The book calls it a 'natural cycle of death and despair. Naturally, there are a variety of theories about these pits and the book takes the reader through the most likely ones. The feeling is that the pits formed about 35,000-40,000 years ago.
There are several photos that add so much to the information offered in the book. The pits had a complicated history until someone finally understood what they were and began to find fossils and artifacts. The story of how people excavated the pits and what they found is absolutely astounding. The picture of the Columbian mammoth found in the tar pits is wow. I believe that so far, the pit has released 750,000 animal, insect, and flora to be studied.
Learn how scientists have altered their beliefs about many things because of what they have learned from the animals emerging from the pits. I knew that camels were once indigenous to North America, but had died out centuries ago. However, in the fossil site, they brought out two distinct species of camels. Only one human was extracted from La Brea -- an Indian woman, along with a tamed dog beside her.
Lest you think that this is a charming little morsel for a science major, guess again. I can hardly spell science and I found this morsel delicious. Enjoy.
