Saskquatch Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Finally the kids and I made it out this weekend to hike the creeks that again had been raging most of the spring, summer and have dwindled finally. Found some really interesting bones on our hikes, tons of buffalo bones with numerous skulls, with the biggest measuring exactly 30 inches horn tip to tip. the most unusual find of all was a very old horse burial site that the raging creek had warn away exposing visible skulls and bones. none of these were visible last year. Took a few pics of the horse bones and thought I would share but it says the file is too big. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rejd Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Would love to see some pics. You need to keep the total size of your pics below 2mb per post. Just resize them and post away! A fossil hunter needs sharp eyes and a keen search image, a mental template that subconsciously evaluates everything he sees in his search for telltale clues. -Richard E. Leakey http://prehistoricalberta.lefora.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 When a large number of vertebrates die and are washed into one deposit, it is called a "bone jumble" or a "bone bed". Often the bones are disarticulated and they make quite a jumbled puzzle. http://www.google.com/search?q=fossil+bone+jumble&btnG=Search&hl=en&gbv=1&tbm=isch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Saskquatch has added photos. It does look like these bones are being eroded out of the bank, as opposed to being recently deposited on the bank. OR... look at the first photo... could these bones just have been buried by a mud slide of the bank? Notice how it is slumped down at that spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Huh, strange. It definitely looks like the deposit area is higher up. You can see the "mudslide" effect on top of them. Cool find. It may be Native American. I would do a bit of research of the tribes that lived there. Some tribes buried their horses and showed them just as much respect as their loved ones. ~Charlie~ "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK ->Get your Mosasaur print ->How to spot a fake Trilobite ->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Also notice that the bones are jumbled at an elbow of the river. That's a good spot for the speed of the water to slow down and drop things carried by the current. Stuff like this shows the dawn of the creation of a fossil. Neat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Quite possibly the result of a very old flash flood event where the 'victims' collected and were subsequently buried...only to be uncovered years later by erosion. The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskquatch Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share Posted October 30, 2014 The whole area was a main wagon trail with a Hudson Bay trading post there in the 1800's. The amount of bison bones is unbelievable as there are main rivers/creeks along with 4 lakes. Flooding over the past 3 years has uncovered things I never imagined existed in the 30 years we have been there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 I've read of the horses of settlers getting drown when crossing rivers during flood. I wonder if there are any harness materials or other diagnostic items mixed in with the bones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskquatch Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share Posted October 30, 2014 I Havent had a chance to investigate further, however I also am wondering if their are any additional artifacts buried with them. The trees on the bank are hardwoods well over 100 years old, so it will be interesting to see if I can find anything to help date the bones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxtail Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 More than likely this is where there was a slaughter dump. Just because the river is there now does not mean that the river was there 100, 200, 2,000 years ago. Rivers change their channels all of the time when left to natural devices. Sometimes miles, sometimes mere feet. Also the carcasses could have been dumped over the river bank and had dirt pushed over them. I doubt it is an indian site. It is also possible that it is where a number of sick animals were buried. I would not be surprised if you found bullet holes in the skulls if you dug them out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 Should opportunity present, scrutinizing the teeth for bit-wear would possibly confirm/rule out domestication (at least by settlers). "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 I would not be surprised if you found bullet holes in the skulls if you dug them out. You know, you can buy hats that have "CSI" written on them, and do a crime scene investigation of this site. Should be some clues in there somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskquatch Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 We ended up digging out 4 skulls and a pile of other bones however winter is here now so will have to wait until spring to continue. This whole river system is littered with bison bones, every year (with the flooding we've had) more and more bones wash out of the banks. Great exercise and a beautiful soft sand bottom for miles and miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted November 7, 2014 Share Posted November 7, 2014 Look for bullet holes, butcher marks, scavenging marks, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskquatch Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 We scrutinized the bones quite closely and there were no holes in the skulls and didn't notice any cut marks on the bones. Might find more indication in the spring of what took place possibly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted November 7, 2014 Share Posted November 7, 2014 Sounds more like the re-exposure of past flood victims; the result of the water channel meandering within the area over thousands of years. The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichW9090 Posted November 10, 2014 Share Posted November 10, 2014 As I look at the pictures, it appears to me to be the result of a mud flow down a small tributary channel to the river. I don't think they've been transported more than a few yards. The plural of "anecdote" is not "evidence". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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