A fossil-hunting diver exploring the seabed off Florida’s Gulf Coast discovered a large section of mastodon tusk in April 2024, which he initially mistook for a piece of wood. According to the Associated Press, the fossil measured approximately 4 feet (1.2 metres) long and weighed 70 pounds (31 kilograms). It was found near Venice, Florida, at a depth of about 25 feet (7.6 metres), and was the largest intact section of mastodon tusk diver Alex Lundberg had found in the area. However, the precise age of the tusk had not been determined when the find was reported in June 2024. Before the discovery, Lundberg and his diving companion had recovered fossils which included mammoth teeth, an ancient jaguar’s bones, parts of a dire wolf, and a mastodon tusk, but in smaller pieces, from the same location. The discovery brought another set of remains of a prehistoric animal to the collection of fossils recovered from the Gulf seabed, although its scientific significance remains subject to further assessment.
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