CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – Scientists with the Charleston Center for Paleontology are getting a better look at an ancient fossil discovered in Summerville this summer.
The fossil is estimated to be 29 million years old and is the bones of a cetacean that was an early relative of modern whales and dolphins.
Scientists excavated the fossil, which was discovered in August in a Summerville creek bed, and brought it back to the center so they could start cleaning the bones.
“Once it gets back to the lab, we slowly, remove all the sediment surrounding the, the bones, and then we have to stabilize each piece of bone, and every little piece gets jigsaw back together so that the animal can come back to life,” the center’s founder, Dr. Elizabeth Kane, said.
She said these specimens are not very well studied so they hope to fill that knowledge gap by being able preserve the specimens.
“So we are here to make sure that if you find something, we provide the resources to serve them and get them out of the ground with the avocational paleontology community,” she said.
The Charleston Center for Paleontology says anyone who finds what appears to be the bones of a whole animal should contact professionals rather than trying to remove the fossil because that could destroy the bones.
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