La Brea Tar Pits and Museum

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Alexis Mychajliw on this well-deserved honor, courtesy of the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology. Watch Dr. Mychajliw's acceptance speech here: youtu.be/Zv6YEvtwoPs

Before and After: This Smilodon fatalis (saber-toothed cat) astragalus (foot bone) from #Pit91 was originally excavated in 2004, and recently received a cleaning courtesy of Preparator Sean Campbell. #FossilFriday #FBF

#DidYouKnow: In 1964, the National Park Service designated Rancho La Brea as a National Natural Landmark in recognition for having the largest and most diverse assemblage of extinct Ice Age plants and animals in the world! Aisling Farrell #NationalFossilDay

Good oral hygiene is critical for California's State Fossil Smilodon fatalis! Okaywe don't really floss our saber-toothed cats, but Vertebrate Paleontology Preparators like Alan Zdinak do perform cleaning and maintenance of our Age of Mammals fossil exhibits. Karen Kent #NationalFossilDay

Happy #NationalFossilDay! Join #TarPits Paleontologists Dr. Mairin Balisi and Laura Tewksbury on-site for a peek into our collection and excavation sites tune in to Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology today on YouTube at 5pm PT!

Today’s the day for the #CityOfSTEM! Tune in to L.A.’s official science festival live with multiple programs across 3 streams, including Sean Campbell at the #TarPits, and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Live Animals Program: http://bit.ly/CityOfSTEM2020 City of STEM

Found crushed at the bottom of #Project23 Box 9 Grid C-1/Level 9, this Canis dirus (dire wolf) dentary (jawbone) fragment proves to be more than just a regular #TarPits #FossilFriday find. Preparator Sean Campbell explains: Usually we would use adhesives to keep the fossil together until it can be prepared in the lab, but because we did not use solvents to excavate this specimen, we will set it aside to potentially be used for ancient DNA analysis (so far no group has successfully extracted DNA at La Brea). Because the teeth are in good shape and no chemicals have been used - although the fossil is already naturally broken - it is a good candidate for destructive analysis.

#CityOfSTEM, L.A.’s official science festival, is going virtual this year! This Saturday, October 10, join the #NHMLAC and other guests live for multiple programs across all 3 streams: 10:30am PT (Stream 3) Q&A and Virtual Tour of the #TarPits with Preparator Sean Campbell 10:55am PT (Stream 1) Invertebrate & Vertebrate Presentation with the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Live Animal Program... Be sure to subscribe to City of STEM’s YouTube Channel to tune in to the full program co-hosted by Milena Acosta, #NHMLA Community Engagement Manager: http://bit.ly/CityOfSTEM2020

Today, join Mission Unstoppable and talk Science 'n Stuff with special guests Erica Hernandez and Dr. Emily Lindsey, #TarPits Paleoecologist! Tune in today starting at 3:45pm PT via Twitch: twitch.tv/cbsunstoppable

When you think about the #TarPits, dire wolves and saber-toothed cats may instantly come to mind. But what about raccoons? Learn more about the first raccoon found in #Project23, as well as a recent discovery visit our International Raccoon Appreciation Day playlist for more!

Despite fossils being fragmented and broken apart over thousands of years, the team at the #TarPits is trained not only in recovery but repairing as well. Watch as Preparator Connie Clarke fuses together this recently recovered raccoon skull.

Watch as Preparator Connie Clarke shares part of the fossil preparation process using the raccoon skull recently recovered from #Project23. See more from #InternationalRaccoonAppreciationDay in our latest videos!

We're digging deeper into our recent raccoon recovery! Step into #Project23 Box 13 with Preparator Sean Campbell as he shares where the second #TarPits raccoon fossil ever was found. #InternationalRaccoonAppreciationDay

Assistant Preparator Connie Clarke takes you behind the scenes for a peek inside of the #TarPits Lab where a backlog of fossils have yet to be prepared. Is it possible we’ll stumble on another raccoon fossil someday? Stay tuned for more raccoon fossil findings, #InternationalRaccoonAppreciationDay and beyond.