Wyoming

13,000-Year-Old Animal Bone Needles Unearthed At Mammoth Hunting Base In Wyoming

Published

1 year ago

November 29, 2024

13,000-Year-Old Animal Bone Needles Unearthed At Mammoth Hunting Base In Wyoming

Nearly 13,000 years ago, long before the Pilgrims arrived, mammoth hunters in North America were crafting eyed bone needles from the skeletal remains of foxes, rabbits, and perhaps even an extinct predator. Archaeologists say the discovery is the first of its kind in identifying the species used for these tools, offering a deeper understanding of the life and culture of the region’s early inhabitants, about whom surprisingly little is known.

The newly discovered artifacts were unearthed at the LaPrele Mammoth site in Wyoming’s Converse County by archeologists from the University of Wyoming. Earlier this year the same team revealed the oldest known bead in the Americas, made of hare bone, at the same site. Now, “Our study is the first to identify the species and likely elements from which Paleoindians produced eyed bone needles,” the researchers write in their new paper.

The team collected 32 needle fragments and analyzed their composition of amino acids to see what animal bones they were carved from. This revealed various species, including red foxes, hares or rabbits, bobcats, mountain lions, lynx, and an extinct species of American cheetah (Miracinonyx trumani).

An eyed needle made from the bone of a red fox found at the LaPrele Mammoth archaeological site in Wyoming’s Converse County.

Image Credit: Todd Surovell

The presence of chipped stone artifacts and the bones of a Columbian mammoth (Mammuthus columbi) indicate the LaPrele site was likely a base used for mammoth hunting, making it one of the only mammoth butchery sites in North America. The mammoth was killed, or perhaps scavenged, for food – and what a meal the 10,000-kilogram (22,000-pound) beast must have been.

The researchers on the latest project speculate that the animals used to make bone needles were not primarily hunted for their meat, but for their fur and bones.

“Our results are a good reminder that foragers use animal products for a wide range of purposes other than subsistence, and that the mere presence of animal bones in an archaeological site need not be indicative of diet,” the researchers write in their paper.

The bone needles provide some hints of how prehistoric Americans fashioned clothes. Since textiles break down quickly and are rarely preserved in the archaeological record, we know very little about the clothing of prehistoric peoples. The researchers say the bone relics are evidence of “pelts sewn into complex garments”.

The LaPrele site was used by humans during the Younger Dryas, a period around 12,900 to 11,700 years ago that was marked by a sudden cooling in the Northern Hemisphere. Clearly, chunky fur coats were a must-have to endure the harsh drop in temperatures.

“Such garments might have looked comparable to those of the Inuit, who sewed furbearer pelts into the fringes of parkas whose base material was typically comprised of ungulate hide and used them for hats and mittens. The cold conditions of the North American Younger Dryas in northerly latitudes likely inspired a greater reliance on such garments, and the sparse Early Paleoindian archaeological record suggests a relative abundance of bone needles and furbearers in Younger Dryas-aged sites relative to periods before and after,” the study authors added.

The new study was published in the journal PLOS ONE.

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Wyoming

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for $2.5M – WyoFile

Published

7 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for .5M – WyoFile

The University of Wyoming filed a lawsuit this week seeking $2.5 million from an energy company it partnered with to research enhanced oil recovery.

The university in 2024 signed a contract with Houston-based ACU Energy to advance research at the university’s Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, according to the university’s complaint filed Monday in Wyoming’s U.S. District Court. ACU Energy agreed to pay the university $15 million over the six-year research period. The company, according to the complaint, was to pay the university $2.5 million annually with two payments each year.

While the university kept up its end of the bargain — by assembling a research team, training research members and incurring costs to modify laboratory space — ACU Energy “failed to pay the University even a cent owed under the Agreement, leaving $2,500,000 outstanding in unpaid invoices,” the complaint alleges.

ACU Energy did not respond to a WyoFile request for comment before publication.

Old Main, the University of Wyoming’s oldest building, is home to administrative offices. (Tennessee Watson/WyoFile)

The company notified the university in February that it was terminating the contract, and the university notified ACU Energy in May of its breach of contract, according to court filings. The university asked the court for a jury trial.

Enhanced oil recovery refers to methods used to squeeze more crude from reservoirs that have already been tapped for primary production, extending the life of an oilfield.

The university commonly accepts money from private businesses in return for lending resources and expertise to advance research. The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media is part of the university’s Research Centers of Excellence in the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences.

The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, led by Mohammad Piri, a professor of petroleum engineering, bills itself as “the most advanced oil and gas research facility in the world.” The center conducts research at the university’s High Bay Research facility, which “is funded by $37.2 million in state dollars and $16.3 million in private contributions, with an additional $9.2 million in private gifts for research equipment,” according to the center’s website.

The center has received donations from oil industry heavyweights like ExxonMobil, Halliburton and Baker Hughes.

Piri was tapped to serve as “principal investigator” for the UW-ACU Energy partnership, according to the university’s complaint. As of press time, ACU Energy had not filed a response to the lawsuit.

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Wyoming

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Published

19 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

With a population under 600, Byron, Wyo., is generally a quiet town. In recent weeks, streets have been even quieter as both local and federal law enforcement search for 39-year-old fugitive Anthony Pease, who is wanted for six counts of sexual assault involving a minor.

Authorities have been searching the area for weeks, and a reward for information leading to an arrest now sits at $2,000.

See how the search impacts the town:

Search for fugitive wanted for child sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Saturday morning, law enforcement shared there was a confirmed sighting of Pease near town and reminded residents to remain vigilant by locking their doors and reporting suspicious activity. According to Wyoming’s Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office, before the weekend sighting, Pease hasn’t been seen since Nov. 1.

The Big Horn County Schools Superintendent, Matt Davidson, told MTN News a school resource officer on staff stays up to date with the latest on search efforts, and some parents say they’ve been keeping their kids indoors when they’re not at school.

As the search continues, the mayor as well as some residents, say they are taking law enforcement’s advice while keeping a watchful eye.

“I never used to lock my house during the day. I didn’t even lock my vehicles at night. In fact, a lot of the time I’d leave the keys in them. I’ve talked to other people and there is quite a few people that are nervous. I would hope that a lot of us are nervous because this is a bad thing,” said Byron Mayor Allan Clark.

In fact, investigators could be seen around Byron knocking on doors and scanning land outside of town.

“There’s just so much area and a low population, so much area for him to hide and seek shelter,” Clark said.

With so many wide-open spaces and abandoned buildings in the area, Clark understands why the search has gone on so long.

According to the US Marshals Service, Pease is 5 feet 11 inches tall and may also be going by the name Abraham. They also ask that anyone nearby who has a collection of silver dollars to ensure they are still there, and if not, to report to authorities.

Marshals say Pease is considered dangerous, and the public is told to not approach him and instead call 9-1-1. As the search has stretched over six weeks, many residents hope a capture will bring life back to normal.

“I hope that they capture him soon, and I hope that us as community members and around the area keep our eyes open and report anything suspicious,” said Clark.

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