Florida diver's rare mastodon tusk find faces legal challenge
A few miles off the coast of Florida, an unusual situation occurred. Alex Lundberg, a diver and treasure hunter, stumbled upon a rare find. At first glance, it appeared to be an ordinary piece of wood, but upon closer inspection, Lundberg discovered it was something much more valuable – a fragment of a mastodon tusk.
Initial analyses and measurements showed it to be a significant fragment of the long-extinct animal's tusk, measuring about 1.2 metres and weighing nearly 31 kilograms. The find was pulled up from a depth of about 8 metres in the area of Venice Beach, Florida.
Fragment of a mastodon tusk at the bottom of the Atlantic
"We kind of knew there could be one in the area," Lundberg admitted in an interview with The Independent, referring to previous discoveries in the region. He also added that as he removed the layer of sand, he noticed the object "just keeps getting bigger and bigger." After retrieving the object, he realised it was something much more valuable than wood.
Mastodons are extinct animals from the order Proboscidea, different from modern elephants due to their abundant hair, specific dentition, and massive tusks.
Scientists estimate that mastodons disappeared from the Earth's surface about 10,000 to 9,000 years ago due to hunting and drastic climate changes. In ancient times, they inhabited the wetlands of present-day North America, but their remains have also been found in Africa and Eurasia. Most species grew to a height of around 2.4 to 3 metres at the shoulder, although the largest one, the Borson's Mastodon, reached up to 4 metres in height at the shoulder and weighed up to 14,500 kilograms, featuring the longest tusks.
The diver would like to keep the find
Alex Lundberg decided to take the find home. He plans to keep it for a longer period, but it is uncertain if he will succeed. According to Florida law, vertebrate fossils discovered on its territory, including in coastal waters, are the property of local authorities and the Florida Museum of Natural History. Like most such discoveries, the mastodon tusk fragment must be reported to the museum, which will decide its future.
"The museum will review the discoveries and localities to determine their significance and the permit holder can keep the fossils if the museum does not request them within 60 days of reporting. This may be a significant find depending on exactly where it was collected," explained Rachel Narducci from the Florida Museum of Natural History.
