July 2, 1999

Alan Desmarais, a Geneva foreman, said two of his men were scooping aggregate from the side of the gravel pit when a partial skull and horn "just came tumbling out of the wall. We didn't know exactly what it was, of course, except that it was old. So I called the experts to come out and take a look before we dug any further."

State Paleontologist Jim Kirkland of the Utah Geological Survey said the fossil is that of a musk ox, a beast normally found in much colder climates than Utah's. The fossil was located in a layer of sediment that is the remnants of the shores of Lake Bonneville, making the skull and horn at least 15,000 years old. At that time, glaciers filled the canyons to the east and the shores of Lake Bonneville supported lush vegetation and an astonishing variety of wildlife. The region was similar to what Alaska and northern Canada are like today.

"Utah is a fossil-rich state," Kirkland noted. "When contractors do extensive excavation, such as for gravel pits or building sites, fossils may be uncovered. But since it's usually private property, we can only hope that the contractors will act responsibly when they uncover something like this, as Geneva did in calling us. We appreciate their call; we aren't looking to stop their work. These specimens provide important data documenting the environmental history of Utah and its prehistoric inhabitants." The specimen will now be housed at the University of Utah Natural History Museum, where it will be available to researchers, he said.

This is only the second year of operation for the gravel pit, Desmarais said, noting that "we will be sure to keep an eye out for more fossils now. This has been fun and interesting."