#Park ranger discovers 400-lb. salmon, more in prehistoric fossil trove

This Californian went for a stroll and happened upon ancient history.

East Bay Municipal Utility District ranger Greg Francek was on a walk through the Sierra Nevada foothills in the summer of 2020 when he noticed a petrified tree, partially buried in mud. Upon further inspection, he found a trove of fossils now considered to be one of the most “significant” fossil findings in the state’s history.

“I looked around the area further and I found a second tree,” Francek said in a statement, according to SF Gate. “And then a third and so on. After finding dozens of trees I realized that what I was looking at was the remains of a petrified forest.”

Francek continued to explore the site after realizing that and, three weeks later, made an even wilder discovery.

“I located the first vertebrate fossils,” he said. “What I didn’t comprehend at the time was the amazing fact that I was looking at the bones of great beasts that had roamed this landscape millions of years ago.”

Those included the bones of elephant-like mastodons and gomphotheres, camels and a 400-pound spiked-tooth salmon. Paleontologists continue to analyze the bones, which are believed to date to the Miocene era some 10 million years ago.

“The discovery is highly significant because of both the sheer number and diversity of specimens found. Few other fossil discoveries like this exist in California,” said Dr. Russell Shapiro of the Chico State Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences in a statement. “The bones paint a clearer picture of life 10 million years ago when animals evolved from living in forests to grassland as the landscape changed.”