Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument near Hagerman,

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...

, contains the largest concentration of

Hagerman horse The Hagerman horse (''Equus simplicidens''), also called the Hagerman zebra or the American zebra, was a North American species of equid from the Pliocene epoch and the Pleistocene epoch. It was one of the oldest horses of the genus ''Equus'' and ...

fossils A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

in North America. The fossil horses for which the monument is famous have been found in only one locale in the northern portion of the monument called the

Hagerman Horse Quarry The Hagerman Horse Quarry is a paleontological site containing the largest concentration of Hagerman horse (''Equus simplicidens'') fossils yet found. The quarry is within Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, located west of Hagerman, Idaho, US ...

. The monument is internationally significant because it protects the world's richest known fossil deposits from the late

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

, and the earliest appearances of modern flora and fauna. This is also significant because the fossils present during this period of the Pliocene represent species which were alive during the early stages in the evolution of humans, albeit on a different continent. The fossil beds were designated a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...

in 1975.

Notable fossils

, ''Equus simplicidens'', formerly known as ''Plesippus shoshonensis'' * ''

Camelops ''Camelops''Being occasionally called ''Western Camel'' or ''Yesterday's Camel''. is an extinct genus of camels that lived in North and Central America, ranging from Alaska to Guatemala, from the middle Pliocene to the end of the Pleistocene. It ...

'', an extinct genus of camel that once inhabited North America Many other species are also found in the fossil record, including

mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of the ...

s, saber-toothed cats, and bone-crushing dogs (

Borophaginae The extinct Borophaginae form one of three subfamilies found within the canid family. The other two canid subfamilies are the extinct Hesperocyoninae and extant Caninae. Borophaginae, called "bone-crushing dogs", were endemic to North America dur ...

), as well as various species of fish, frog,

vole Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of lo ...

and beaver.

References

External links

* *
Official Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument website
{{authority control National Park Service National Monuments in Idaho Fossil museums Fossil parks in the United States Museums in Hagerman, Idaho Natural history museums in Idaho National Natural Landmarks in Idaho Paleontology in Idaho Protected areas of Gooding County, Idaho Protected areas of Twin Falls County, Idaho Neogene Idaho Pliocene United States Pliocene paleontological sites of North America Protected areas established in 1988 1988 establishments in Idaho 1988 in paleontology Natural history of Idaho

Notable fossils

See also

References

External links