At the La Brea Tar Pits in California, remains of ancient life are found in the bubbling oil which reveal new information about what the planet used to be. Beetles, foxes, wolves, sabercats, and more have all been discovered perserved in the tar which paints an incredible picture of the Pleistocene ecosystem.

40,000 years ago, the La Brea Tar Pits were a natural formation of oil seeps that were masked with dead leaves and plants. When prey animals got caught in these seeps, larger predators could be drawn and also trapped. Over time, the tar would bury them and seal their bodies in perserving material for thousands of years.

Crafted here at Mini Museum, this resin-infused specimen was created using material from a selection of mined La Brea Tar Pit material which contained the remains of coyotes, dung beetles, rabbits, and even a bald eagle.

The piece is enclosed in an acrylic specimen jar and ships in one of our small, classic riker cases. A small specimen card is included, which also serves as the certificate of authenticity.

Please Note: All of these specimens are products of petroleum seeps, as such, they will be oily and dirty. They will also smell faintly of charcoal or tar. Even the resin stabilization still exhibits some oiliness. We would reccommend using gloves if you choose to handle the specimen outside its case.

Additionally, we do have some larger specimens from the Tar Pits available which contain fossils embedded in the matrix below.

"We weren’t looking for stuff living in it." ~ John Harris, Paleontologist and Chief Curator at the Page Museum

Dirt, leaves, or even water can cover the seep, turning the surface into a sticky trap. Once caught in the viscous tar, the animals die, though perhaps not without attracting other animals who prey on the remains and often become trapped as well.

Tar pits, also known as petroleum seeps, are formed by the hydrocarbons stored in deep oil and gas reservoirs leaking out of folded layers of sedimentary rock and bubbling upwards. This tar can squeeze through faults in the stone or in particularly porous rocks, rising to the surface and becoming a thick, sticky asphalt. Over many thousands of years, seeps can grow into large lakes, widening and pooling into deep areas of tar.

The remains from the La Brea Tar Pits speak to an ancient cycle of life and death. Yet, there are always surprises in science, and in 2007 scientists discovered living microbial communities deep within the hardened layers of tar. This unexpected find is leading to new ways of thinking about life here on Earth and elsewhere.

After the animal is consumed by the pit, its remains are surrounded with asphalt which protects them from weathering and decomposition. This allows for excellent preservation and fossilization, which often appears with a dark brown tint from the surrounding tar.

Due to the nature of the animal’s entrapment, clusters of fossils from many creatures of different species can often be found together. Ordinarily, predators will be found first, with the prey they chased below them. Common species include smilodons, dire wolves, coyotes, bison, ground sloths, as well as birds, insects, and reptiles.