News Items about the Museum of Idaho
The Museum of Idaho Welcomes Rare Prehistoric Giant Sloth to its Collection
The Museum of Idaho is excited to announce the arrival of a life size skeletal cast of a rare prehistoric giant sloth as part of their growing collections. This fascinating creature was donated on behalf of Allen and Joann McCrady to the Museum of Idaho.
"It is an incredible addition to our collection and makes a wonderful Ice Age sidekick to our Columbian Mammoth," states Museum of Idaho's Executive Director David Pennock. "The generosity of Mr. and Mrs. McCrady is invaluable to our institution and this piece will certainly be an integral part of our collections department. There is nothing like this anywhere in the region, whatsoever. What a phenomenal educational opportunity for us all; we know that the public will enjoy this magnificent specimen for years to come".
This particular sloth is referred to as Harlan's ground sloth (Paramylodon harlani). It was about the size of an ox and was native to these parts of Eastern Idaho. It is one of the two ground sloth's found trapped in the La Brea Tar Pits in California. This sloth was definitely a giant, with a length of about 13 feet and stood upright. It is believed to have died out sometime during the Pleistocene (2 million - 10,000 years ago). An interesting feature of the Harlan's ground sloth were the small bones deep under the skin around the neck, shoulders and back which may have served as armor against attacking predators.
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