10-year-old boy trips over 1.2M-year-old fossil in New Mexico desert

[jeff of pa]

Ten-year-old Jude Sparks was on a desert hike in Las Cruces in November when he tripped over what turned out to be the fossilized tusk of a 1.2 million-year-old elephant-like creature, called a stegomastodon.
The family contacted New Mexico State University professor Peter Houde, and he and a team from the university spent a week digging up the skull in May after getting permission from the landowner.
Houde estimates the entire skull ways about a ton.
He expects the university to put the skull on exhibit after it's studied and reconstructed, which could take years.

 

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[Honest Samuel]

The boy and his family deserve a big reward.

 

[walnuttree]

Fossils are very interesting, what animals lived in times past. That boy should at least get a free pass to see the preserved fossil and the museum. Maybe this will spark his interest in such things.

 

[RustyGold]

The look on his face is priceless. He seems very proud of his find. Awesome..

 

[snakeyes]

No telling what you might find out here, I think I found the Chupacraba on Saturday in Northen New Mexico