CAS CONNECT 2014

15 Shawna Smith, a first-year geology graduate student, and Taylor Iberosi, a junior majoring in geography, worked with the remains in a campus lab. With the help of the Dean’s Excellence Fund, the two gained rare hands-on experience in the preservation and final construction of the Helena mammoth throughout the spring semester. “I got an email from my adviser, who was looking for geography majors to volunteer for the dig,” Iberosi says. “I emailed her back asking if this was a real thing. She emailed me right after, assuring me that it was real, and I jumped on that opportunity like it was the last biscuit on the breakfast table.” After receiving special training in proper preservation techniques from the Oklahoma Archaeological Survey, the two students began to preserve, puzzle and glue the bones back together. In addi- tion, they photographed, sketched and measured the completed bones while documenting the lab process. “Some important points I’m taking away from this experience are the scien- tific need for attention to detail and a new appreciation for extensive documenta- tion that will serve me well in my future career,” Smith says. Although the data analysis is complete and the remains safely stored, the story continues. Because of the lack of tech- nology and certain expertise at OSU, Cox and Cordova have sent samples to labs and are patiently waiting for many answers regarding dates and specifics about the Helena mammoth that may determine the next chapter of its story — and that of OSU. Cox and Cordova have their own ideas regarding the mammoth: Is it an Emperor or Columbian mammoth? How old is it? Male or female? What did it eat? What killed it? And there may be evidence of human involvement with the animal, but more will be known once the proper testing is completed. For example, the leg bones of the Helena mammoth were completely separated from the rest of the body, found in a separate area of the dig site. “Hopefully, this is going to be a new area of research for OSU,” Cox says. The department hopes to secure fund- ing and display plans for the mammoth in the fall, but until then, Cordova and Cox have bigger ideas. “There is more than just this mammoth,” Cordova says. “It’s not only that mammoth. It’s all the mammoths that may have existed in that area and all the other ones we are looking at.” Shelby Holcomb PHIL SHOCKLEY / UNIVERSITY MARKETING