Native American Artifacts & Hot Wheels
Lot 237:
Extinct Giant Ground Sloth Upper Vertebrae Fossil Found in Iowa
Extinct Giant Ground Sloth Upper Vertebrae Found in Iowa. A very nice specimen as shown in photos. The giant ground sloth that once roamed Iowa is known as Megalonyx jeffersonii, or Jefferson’s giant ground sloth. This massive Ice Age mammal stood nearly ten feet tall and weighed between 2 to 3 tons, comparable to a small elephant. It lived during the Pleistocene epoch, a time when glaciers covered much of Iowa. Giant Ground Sloths were very strangely built creatures. The upper vertebrae are so much smaller than the lower vertebrae it is hard to imagine them coming from the same animal. A lower vertebrae is often as big around as a 5 gallon bucket. Ground sloth fossils are often fossil hunters most prized possessions due to their rarity and how odd they are compared to other mega fauna fossils from the Pleistocene. This species went extinct around 10,000 years ago in Iowa based on carbon dating samples that have been done. 8 1/2" b7 5 7/8′ by 2 3/4" approximately. There has been no restoration work done to this fossil.
Condition: Ancient Authentic
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