Result from the Talara tar seeps #paleostream! Like the La Brea tar pits this was Pleistocene death trap, however these fossils come from Peru so everything has a south american flavor. This piece is set at the beginning of the rainy season, with new green beginning to sprout...
and the guayacane trees in full bloom. Fresh water is covering the tar making it a welcome place for migrating birds to drink and rest. Megafauna is drawn here as well to feed on the the surrounding neotropical dry forest. The assemblage we have here is still not fully...
understood and many important fossils have only been mentioned in the literature but they paint a remarkably different picture from the tar seeps today. Among the animals a huge number of birds stand out, many of them showing how close to the coast this site was...
Weird is the presence of Smilodon fatalis instead of populator but also the surprisingly small local population of Eremotherium, with Catonyx filling the role of the largest local ground sloth. There are also white tailed deer, smaller than the also present dire wolves
Big jaguars, Notiomastodon, caimans and pumas round out the fauna. If you wonder why there aren't more reptiles I suggest you poke Phil Currie to ask him about his unpublished thesis on the herpeto fauna from here ;)
Size chart by Discord member Gnath
