Hancock Park : Fossil Finders on View
The annual excavation of Pit 91 has begun at the La Brea tar pits.
Since 1969, Pit 91 has yielded more than 80,000 specimens of Ice Age fossils, from fossilized pollen to the skull of a saber-toothed cat. Last year, a record 1,100 specimens were unearthed.
The excavation is the only such paleontological dig open to the public in a major city in the United States.
The tar pits contain one of the world’s biggest concentrations of fossils. Beginning about 40,000 years ago, animals and other organisms became trapped in the liquid asphalt that continues to ooze to the surface in the Hancock Park area. The asphalt preserved the fossils, which were first dug up in large numbers between 1913 and 1915.
From a viewing station at ground level in Pit 91, visitors are able to watch scientists and volunteers uncover fossils 14 feet below.
The station is open Wednesdays through Sundays, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The exhibition began July 8 and continues through Aug. 30.
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