Connect with us

Southwest

Texas road construction unearths 'colossal' prehistoric remains of 'big ol' animals'

Published

on

Texas road construction unearths 'colossal' prehistoric remains of 'big ol' animals'

A recent excavation in Texas yielded some “colossal creatures,” according to local officials – and archaeologists are hopeful more will be uncovered soon.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced the discovery in a recent press release. In a statement, officials said the excavation took place in Lubbock during the environmental review for Loop 88, a proposed state highway.

During the archaeological survey, diggers uncovered ancient bones dating back to prehistoric times. The remains belonged to megafauna, which are large mammals.

ANCIENT BEDROCK KITCHENS REVEAL EVIDENCE OF HISTORICAL FOOD PRACTICES, EXPERTS SAY

Chris Ringstaff, a project planner with TxDOT’s environmental affairs division, said that megafauna bones “[are] not unusual in the region.”

Advertisement

Ringstaff also noted that at least one giant ground sloth was identified, thanks to its distinctive tooth.

Archaeologists in Texas recently discovered prehistoric megafauna bones, including a giant ground sloth, during a highway project. (Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT))

“Whether all the bones are giant ground sloth or there are different animals such as mammoth or mastodon, we’re not sure,” he said.

“Paleontologists will give us positive identification.”

‘WELL-PRESERVED’ BABY MAMMOTH DATING BACK TO ICE AGE DISSECTED BY SCIENTISTS: PHOTOS

Advertisement

“We’re here to get the road built, but who doesn’t love digging up big ol’ animals?” Ringstaff added.

TxDOT noted that the Lone Star State is home to many dried-out lakes called playas, which date back to the Ice Age.

Archaeologists working at site

Archaeologists hope to find evidence of more Ice Age megafauna at the Lubbock excavation site. (Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT))

“In prehistoric times, animals and humans used playas as water sources and these sites can sometimes contain evidence of human activity,” the press release noted.

For more Lifestyle articles, visit foxnews.com/lifestyle

Archaeologists are still searching for small artifacts. They’re also using dating techniques to determine the age of the remains. 

Advertisement

If any proof of human settlement is found, the project will be temporarily halted.

“Should the site reveal human activity with megafauna from the Ice Age, it would be [the] first of its kind for a TxDOT project,” the statement said.

skeleton of a giant ground sloth

The skeleton of a giant ground sloth, seen here. Excavators found remains of a giant ground sloth at the Lubbock site. (Getty Images)

Several prehistoric bones are found in the U.S. every year. 

Last summer, archaeologists in Iowa unearthed a 13,000-year-old mastodon skull.

Advertisement

Later in 2024, a New York homeowner found a complete mastodon jaw in his Scotchtown backyard.

Read the full article from Here

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Southwest

Dallas train shooting leaves 1 dead, second homicide on DART transit system in a week

Published

on

Dallas train shooting leaves 1 dead, second homicide on DART transit system in a week

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

One person is dead after a shooting on a Dallas Area Rapid Transit train Sunday night, marking the second deadly incident on the Texas train system in the past week.

The shooting happened near the Pearl/Arts District Station on Bryan Street around 7 p.m., according to FOX 4.

DART police responded after a caller reported an active shooter at the station, the outlet reported. One person was found dead from a gunshot wound on the train.

Details surrounding the incident are limited, but FOX 4 reported a suspect is in custody.

Advertisement

AMERICA’S COMMUTERS UNDER SIEGE AS VIOLENT TRANSIT CRIMES ENDANGER BLUE CITIES

Police responded to the DART train near Pearl/Arts District Station on Bryan Street after a passenger was shot and killed. (Jordan Bickerstaff via FOX 4)

Fox News Digital reached out to DART for comment, but did not hear back by the time of publication.

The deadly shooting comes less than a week after a man was killed on the DART train last Monday. DART police responded to the Market Center Station on Harry Hines Boulevard at around 10:15 p.m., FOX 4 reported on Wednesday.

Daniel Tom Gormley, 53, was found inside a train car with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene after first responders attempted life-saving measures.

Advertisement

NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR SIGNS ‘IRYNA’S LAW’ AFTER UKRAINIAN REFUGEE’S BRUTAL TRAIN MURDER

Covered up window on DART train after shooting

One person is dead after a shooting on a DART train in Dallas, Texas, on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (Jordan Bickerstaff via FOX 4)

Gormley was a Marine veteran, according to a GoFundMe page aimed at helping the family pay for funeral costs.

“He was a victim of a senseless act of violence while aboard a train in Dallas, Texas, and was taken from us far too soon,” the fundraiser reads. “Our family is heartbroken and completely unprepared for the financial burden of planning a funeral and managing the associated costs. We are reaching out to our community for support during this devastating time.”

Daniel Tom Gormley, shooting victim on DART train in Texas

Daniel Tom Gormley, 53, was shot and killed on a DART train in Dallas on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025. (GoFundMe)

A DART rail operator reported to police that Gormley told the suspect to get off the train before the suspect fired a gun three times, according to FOX 4. It’s unclear what led to the exchange.

Gormley’s accused killer was identified as Christopher Clemson Akins and was taken into custody quickly, police said.

Advertisement

DART Police Chief Charles Cato said last Wednesday that such incidents are “extremely rare” and “taken very seriously.”

“DART Police remain deeply committed to the safety of our riders, employees, and the communities we serve,” Cato said, via FOX 4.

DART is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, offering multiple travel options: Light Rail, Trinity Railway Express commuter rail, bus routes, GoLink on-demand services and paratransit services.

Read the full article from Here

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Southwest

Army veteran-turned-MAGA rising star jumps into fiery GOP Senate primary as polls tighten

Published

on

Army veteran-turned-MAGA rising star jumps into fiery GOP Senate primary as polls tighten

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas announced Monday that he’s running for the Senate, jumping into an already bitter battle between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and primary challenger Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

“The U.S. Senate race in Texas must be about more than a petty feud between two men who have spent months trading barbs,” Hunt said in a statement as he launched his campaign. “With my candidacy, this race will finally be about what’s most important — Texas.”

Hunt’s entry into the race turns up the heat on an already combustible battle between Cornyn, who’s running in 2026 for a fifth six-year term representing red state Texas in the Senate, and Paxton, the MAGA firebrand who’s an ally of President Donald Trump.

Hunt, a West Point graduate who flew Apache helicopters during his Army service and a rising MAGA star who is in his second term representing a safe Republican district in the Houston-area, emphasized in his statement, “My record speaks louder than words. I am the most consistently conservative legislator representing Texas in Congress.”

Advertisement

IS CORNYN CLOSING THE GAP WITH PAXTON IN THE GOP’S MOST COMBUSTIBLE 2026 SENATE PRIMARY?

Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 15, 2024. (Mike Segar – Reuters)

Cornyn, who is backed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, trailed Paxton by double digits at the beginning of the summer.

TRUMP’S SHADOW LOOMS LARGE IN 2025 ELECTION SHOWDOWNS

But Cornyn has narrowed the polling gap in recent weeks, thanks in part to a massive ad blitz by allies that spotlighted the numerous controversies that have battered Paxton over the past decade.

Advertisement

Trump, whose endorsement would make a major impact in the Texas primary battle, has remained neutral to date.

Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas campaigns for Trump

Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas opens a Trump 2024 campaign field office in Philadelphia, on June 4, 2024. (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )

Hunt, pointing to his backing of Trump as the then-former president launched his 2024 White House comeback, touted that “I was the first person in the nation to endorse President Trump, and I have remained steadfast in my commitment to the people of Texas.”

FOUR KEY SENATE SEATS THE GOP AIMS TO FLIP IN 2026 MIDTERMS

Hunt had been mulling a Senate run for months and sources confirmed to Fox News earlier this year that the congressman had made his case to Trump’s political team that he’s the only person who could win both a GOP primary and a general election.

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas

Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas is running for re-election in 2026 for a fifth six-year term in the U.S. Senate. (Reuters)

And an aligned super PAC spent big bucks this summer to increase Hunt’s name recognition across the state of Texas.

Advertisement

Paxton adviser Nick Maddux, in a statement to Fox News, said that “Primaries are good for our party and our voters, and Paxton and Hunt both know that Texans deserve better than the failed, anti-Trump record of John Cornyn.”

But Cornyn campaign senior adviser Matt Mackowiak argued in a statement that “Rep. Wesley Hunt is a legend in his own mind. No one is happier this morning than the national Democrats who are watching Wesley continue his quixotic quest for relevancy, costing tens of millions of dollars that will endanger the Trump agenda from being passed.”

Hunt’s entry into the GOP nomination race could prevent the winner of next March’s primary from winning a majority of the vote, which would trigger a runoff election two and a half months later.

Texas AG Ken Paxton

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, seen at the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, is primary challenging GOP Sen. John Cornyn in the 2026 election. (Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Democrats are hoping for a Paxton victory in the primary, which they believe would make next year’s general election more competitive.

Advertisement

It’s been nearly four decades since a Democrat won a Senate election in Texas. You have to go back to the 1988 re-election victory by then-Sen. Lloyd Bentsen.

Former Rep. Colin Allred, who lost last November’s Senate election in Texas to conservative firebrand Sen. Ted Cruz by over 8 points, is running for the 2026 Democratic nomination, along with rising star Texas state Rep. James Talarico and former astronaut Terry Virts.

Read the full article from Here

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Southwest

Officer’s smooth dance moves convince partygoers to turn down music

Published

on

Officer’s smooth dance moves convince partygoers to turn down music

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

An Oklahoma police officer’s smooth moves while issuing a noise citation have gone viral.

The officer with the Tulsa Police Department was caught on video dancing at a party while onlookers recorded with their phones and cheered him on at approximately  9 p.m. on Sept. 27. 

“The caller said her neighbors had been playing loud music all day, and she wanted to file a complaint,” the department’s Facebook post with the video of the dancing officer said.

“Since this was the second time officers got called out there for the same issue, Officer Greene did issue a nuisance sound citation… but while he was there, he took a few minutes to also show off his dance moves!”

Advertisement

OFFICERS’ UNEXPECTED PIZZA DELIVERY GOES VIRAL AFTER HOLIDAY TRAFFIC STOP ARREST

Tulsa Police Officer Greene dances while issuing a noise citation at a party on Sept. 27, 2025.  (Facebook/Tulsa Police Department)

Tulsa PD’s video of the dance had been viewed more than 1.1 million times as of Monday afternoon. 

VIDEO SHOWS NEW JERSEY STREET TAKEOVER ERUPTING WITH MOB SHOOTING FIREWORKS AT POLICE

Officer Greene TPD dances while issuing citation

Tulsa Police Department’s Officer Greene appears to be doing a choreographed group dance.  (Facebook/Tulsa Police Department)

“The fact that TPD posted the video after the complaint makes it even funnier,” one Facebook user wrote. 

Advertisement
Officer Greene TPD dances does choreographed dance

Onlookers are telling Tulsa PD’s Officer Greene the moves while recording him dancing.  (Facebook/Tulsa Police Department)

The department did post a comment on the video explaining the ordinance that the partygoers allegedly violated. 

“The people out there appreciated his style, and also agreed to turn down the music,” TPD wrote. “Nice moves, Officer Greene!” 

Read the full article from Here

Advertisement
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending