On Oct. 25, Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus and Historian Johanna Yaun visited fourth graders at Willow Avenue Elementary School. The date marked the fifth anniversary of Mastodon Day.
Several years ago, letters from students at Willow Avenue School poured into the Orange County mailroom, asking Neuhaus to designate one day each year as “Orange County Mastodon Day.” Thirty-eight skeletons have been found since 1780, making Orange County the unofficial capital of exhumed mastodons in the U.S.
Neuhaus began the session by asking the students a variety of questions, the first being, “What are mastodons and why should we care about them?”
Mastodons were large creatures, measuring seven to nine feet in height, brought here by the Ice Age. While some students thought they lived millions of years ago with the dinosaurs, they actually became extinct about 10,000 years ago when humans also roamed the planet.
Neuhaus and Yuan asked the students how the mastodons became extinct. Such theories include: individuals got stuck in the mud, the Ice Age brought about a climate change which the mastodon could not adapt to, or the leading theory is they were wiped out by hunters.
The kids also offered their own theories like they drowned when the ice melted.
“I like that you guys have theories and you’re asking questions,” Neuhaus said. It’s always good to ask questions because that’s how you learn.”
“When scientists found the first tooth they started asking a lot of questions,” Yuan added.” It took them 200 years to figure out what the creature was. They had to keep digging for more bones. It took 50 years to determine it looked like an elephant.”
Yuan explained the bones were found mixed with those of bears, sloths, and other creatures, so it took scientists a long time to realize the creature’s bone structure resembled that of an elephant.
Due to the number of skeletons found in the area, scientists are now only interested in those bones that have a story to tell, like if bite marks from other animals or arrow heads from human hunting are discovered.
The conversation quickly turned to the opening of Legoland some time next year. The students presented the county executive with letters outlining suggestions for the theme park. They even requested the park build a mastodon out of Lego blocks. Neuhaus said he would definitely pass along the suggestions because park owners are interested in what kids want. Although their parents pay for park admission, it’s the children who are the actual customers.
Last year, the students wrote letters to the county executive when he was serving overseas. They didn’t have the opportunity to hand him the letters until last week.
