АНУ-ын Алабама мужийн голын эргээс шинжлэх ухаанд урьд өмнө бүртгэгдээгүй, 32 сая жилийн настай арьсан бүрхүүлтэй далайн яст мэлхийн бүрэн бүтэн шарил олдлоо.
2021 онд Коулманы гэр бүл загасчилж явахдаа шохойн чулуун дунд нуугдсан уг олдворыг санамсаргүй олжээ. Палеонтологич Эндрю Жентри болон МакВэйн шинжлэх ухааны төвийн судлаачид уг олдворыг Олигоцений эрин үед хамаарах, шинэ зүйл болохыг тогтоосон байна. Ойролцоогоор 1.2 метр урт, 0.9 метр өргөн хэмжээтэй энэхүү яст мэлхийг Ueloca colemanorum хэмээн нэрлэжээ.
Арьсан бүрхүүлтэй яст мэлхийн хуяг нь том ялтсуудаас бус, мозайк хэлбэрээр байрласан олон жижиг яснаас бүрддэг тул бүрэн бүтнээрээ олддог нь ховор юм. Энэхүү олдвор нь тухайн төрөл зүйлийн хувьслын түүхийг судлахад чухал ач холбогдолтой бөгөөд сүүлийн 40 сая жилийн хугацаанд ижил төстэй шинж чанартай хоёр өөр бүлэг яст мэлхий зэрэгцэн оршиж байсныг баталж байна.
Шинэ зүйлийн нэрийг Мускоги хэлний “усан” (Uewa) болон “яст мэлхий” (Locv) гэсэн үгнээс бүрдүүлсэн нь тухайн бүс нутгийн уугуул иргэдийн түүхийг хүндэтгэж буй хэрэг юм. Одоогийн байдлаар эрдэмтэд уг олдворыг лабораторийн нөхцөлд нарийвчлан судалж, эртний далайн аварга амьтдын мөхлийн шалтгааныг тодруулахаар ажиллаж байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
A family fishing trip in southern Alabama turned into an unexpected scientific discovery when a fossilized 32-million-year-old leatherback sea turtle shell was found along a riverbank. The fossil belongs to a new species named Ueloca colemanorum and is one of the most complete ancient leatherback turtle shells ever discovered.
The find happened in 2021, when the Coleman family spotted something unusual inside a large limestone boulder while looking for fossils during a fishing trip. Adam and Adrienne Coleman had spent years taking their children, Talah and Corey, fishing near their home in southern Alabama. During these trips, the family often searched the riverbanks for fossils. Adam had learned fossil hunting from his own father and later shared that interest with his children.
At first, the family had no idea what they had found. They kept returning to the site and spending time near the fossil until Adam contacted Dr. Andrew Gentry, a paleontologist who studies fossil turtles in Alabama. When Gentry visited the location, he quickly realized the fossil was the remains of an ancient leatherback turtle.
This Ancient Sea Giant Has Survived for Millions of Years
The fossilized shell measures about 4 feet long and 3 feet wide and dates back to the early Oligocene Epoch, around 32 million years ago. The discovery is unusual because leatherback turtle fossils are very difficult to preserve. Modern leatherbacks have a different type of shell compared with most turtles. Instead of large, connected plates, their shells are made of many small bones called ossicles arranged in a mosaic pattern.
When a leatherback dies, the material holding these small bones together usually breaks down, causing the shell to fall apart.
“When I saw the fossil for the first time, it was hard to believe what I was seeing,” said Dr. Andrew Gentry. “It was absolutely breathtaking.”
He added that this is why complete fossil leatherback shells are so rarely found. After identifying the fossil, Gentry contacted Jun Ebersole, Director of Collections at the McWane Science Center in Birmingham. The two researchers brought together a team from the Geological Survey of Alabama, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, the Alabama Aquarium, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Corps to recover the specimen.
The fossil was then moved to a research laboratory, where scientists cleaned and examined it to learn more about the ancient turtle.
The Ancient Fossil With a Surprising Story
After studying the remains, researchers confirmed that the fossil represented a new genus and species of leatherback turtle. They named it Ueloca colemanorum, combining the story of the discovery with the cultural history of the area. The name Ueloca was created with help from members of the Poarch Creek Indians and comes partly from the Muscogee (Mvskoke) language. It combines Uewa, meaning water, and Locv, meaning turtle.
Samantha Martin, Creek Language Coordinator for the Poarch Creek Indians, said the fossil was the first to receive a Muscogee name.
“This is the first fossil to carry a Muscogee name and it’s exciting to see our language recognized in this way. Opportunities like this weave our voice into history and ensure it’s never forgotten,” she explained, as quoted by Fox10.
The second part of the name, colemanorum, honors the Coleman family, who discovered the fossil and later helped researchers recover it. The project brought together paleontologists and members of the Poarch Creek Indians around a fossil found in an area connected to Creek ancestral lands.
This Fossil Discovery Takes Back to the First Turtles
The Ueloca colemanorum fossil is giving researchers a closer look at how leatherback turtles changed over millions of years. Because the specimen is so well preserved, scientists were able to compare its features with other leatherback fossils from around the world.
The research, published in the journal Palaeodiversity, suggests that there may have been at least two separate groups of leatherback turtles that developed similar traits during the last 40 million years. One group survived and led to modern leatherback turtles, while another disappeared from the fossil record millions of years ago.
Scientists are still trying to understand why that other group vanished. The new fossil adds another piece to the story of leatherback evolution while leaving some questions unanswered.
“This is truly a one-in-a-million fossil,” Jun Ebersole stated. “Specimens like this one are why Alabama is quickly becoming a globally recognized hot-spot for fossil diversity.”
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