Columbian Mammoth Bone Found in Eastern Washington

A construction crew working in eastern Washington state near the Idaho border unearthed what is likely a Columbian mammoth bone last week, according to local news reports.

Local ABC affiliate KXLY reported that the bones were found last Thursday just outside of Clarkson, Wash. (Click through to see KXLY's video report of this story.) 

It is believed that the fossilized bone is part the mammoth's front leg, and a further excavation will attempt to find additional bones from the same creature.

Columbian mammoths once roamed North America, feasting on large fruits and other vegetation. Fully grown males could weigh as many as 9 metric tons and could have tusks that extended nearly 14 feet long. The massive land mammals could consume up to 300 pounds of vegetation a day.

It is not uncommon for a Columbian mammoth to be unearthed in Washington. Just last month, a construction crew working in Seattle's South Lake Union area, on the opposite end of the state, found a mammoth tusk.

Mammoth bones have been found in nearly every county in Washington. In fact, Washington state's official fossil is the mammoth, according to the Seattle Times.

What will make the Clarkson find significant is if bones of early humans are found nearby. A team of scientists has been brought to the scene to investigate, KXLY reported.

Lee Sappington, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Idaho, arrived to the site with a team of grad students to conduct a further investigation. The team will dig about 12 feet into the ground - the depth at which the leg bone was found - in an attempt to find additional fossilized bones.

If human bones are found near more mammoth bones, the discovery would be significant, KXLY reported. If not, then it's just more mammoth bones in Washington.