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The La Brea Tar Pits is an active paleontological research site in urban Los Angeles. Hancock Park was formed around a group of tar pits where natural asphalt (also called asphaltum, bitumen, or pitch; brea in Spanish) has seeped up from the ground for tens of thousands of years.
- La Brea Woman
La Brea Woman was a human whose remains were found in the La...
- Carpinteria Tar Pits
The Carpinteria Tar Pits are located in the southeastern...
- McKittrick Tar Pits
The pits are the most extensive asphalt lakes in the state....
- Saber-Toothed Cat
The abundance of Smilodon skeletons in the La Brea tar pits...
- American Lion
Panthera atrox, better known as the American lion, also...
- Binagadi Asphalt Lake
Skeleton of Rhinoceros binagadiensis (Pleistocene), which...
- La Brea Woman
Step into an Ice Age adventure. Unearth mysteries deep beneath your feet, witness fossil discoveries, and explore exhibits of mammoth proportions. Dive into a unique journey through time, as you investigate the science and history preserved by the Tar Pits.
Free Museum Admission Daily For. NHMLAC Members. LA County Residents M-F from 3-5 pm. CA EBT cardholders with ID. California PreK–12 teachers with ID. Active or retired United States military with ID. Children 2 and under.
The iconic Lake Pit, located in front of the museum, is actually a pit left over from asphalt mining operations in the late 1800s. Rain and groundwater has collected above the bubbling asphalt, creating a small lake. The lake’s bubbles, sheet, and distinctive odor come from a deep underground oil field.
Apr 28, 2024 · La Brea Tar Pits, tar (Spanish brea) pits, in Hancock Park (Rancho La Brea), Los Angeles, California, U.S. The area was the site of “pitch springs” oozing crude oil that was used by local Indians for waterproofing. Gaspar de Portolá’s expedition in 1769 explored the area, which encompasses about 20.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Right in the heart of L.A. sits the world’s most powerful gateway to the Ice Age. The asphalt seeps at La Brea Tar Pits are the only active urban fossil dig site in the world. Plants and animals from the last 50,000 years are discovered here every day. Outside, you can watch excavators carve fossils out of the asphalt.
For these are the La Brea tar pits, containing one of the richest, best preserved, and best studied assemblages of Pleistocene vertebrates , including at least 59 species of mammal and over 135 species of bird . The tar pit fossils bear eloquent witness to life in southern California from 40,000 to 8,000 years ago; aside from vertebrates, they ...