Appendix 6.1a: East View are are Interpretive Signs 1a Painting by Don Ramie, 2016 Don Ramie, by Painting Saber-toothed cats Saber-toothed Smilodon of the genus of today’s distant relatives wild and domestic cats. carnivores These massive canines as long as had front on and preyed inches, seven Smilodon large herbivores. state is California’s fatalis fossil. from from Skull of Smilodon fatalis Pits Tar the La Brea The Western The Western horse stout grassland was a large, It was the largest of grazer. horses that the prehistoric America, originated in North and was similar in size to These horses lived a zebra. as wild and feral in herds, horses do today. California bay laurel bay California Przewalski’s horse, the last true wild horse, is related is related the last true wild horse, horse, Przewalski’s horses to the Pleistocene epoch’s Future Future location of Mission Peak Western pond turtle Western redbud Western Western Fremont Fremont cottonwood land mammals of the Irvingtonian cattail arroyo willow arroyo continued into the late Pleistocene, but went extinct by extinct by but went into the late Pleistocene, continued due to climate change and human predation. ago, 6,000 years to this surive fox, and red the raccoon, like Some species, features landscape was wetter, Though the environment day. the resembling be very familiar, would and plant communities Creek. see along Sabercat you vegetation Many of the large of the large Many of the animals living in the About half Irvingtonian landscape are present today, today, present Irvingtonian are landscape duck, mallard pond turtle, Western including the others. and many ground sloth ground was the
creeping wildrye creeping toad Western vulture The Columbian mammoth largest land mammal to live in North America during in North largest land mammal to live tall and 13 feet standing around Age, the Irvingtonian in this area A tusk found about ten tons. weighing These mammoths ranged from long! was 13 feet to the central United States all the way what is now America. South Diablo Range Diablo
tule fossilized skeleton fossilized
Columbian mammoth Western Western
sycamore East View Appendix 6.1b: West View Interpretive Sign 1b Homotherium Painting by Don Ramie, 2016 Don Ramie, by Painting reconstruction reconstruction of a scimitar cat coast live oak coast live , is a smaller saber-toothed cat than is a smaller saber-toothed serum, serrated Smilodon fatalis, with shorter, athletic open It was a fast, canine teeth. terrestrial hunting the large plains predator, of the epoch. herbivores The scimitar cat, The scimitar cat, found in this area in this area found
Ground sloths Ground were much larger than the sloths alive larger than the sloths alive much were long and weighing six to ten feet today, Flat rear up to a thousand pounds. and well-developed stout tail, feet, up on its it to rear allowed claws front leaves. on tree to feed back feet skeleton cast skeleton Ground sloth Ground California ground ground California squirrel black oak black once roamed once roamed had a hump like had a hump like . It is not certain . Camels western western The North America. is named here one found Camelops if Camelops one, or lacked modern camels, its modern llama relatives. like coffeeberry meadow vole meadow during the last glacial period was coyote ancestral Sea level Sea level about 400 feet lower than it is today. Ice sheets and than it is today. lower about 400 feet and cooler water, of the Earth’s glaciers held more As a result, taking up less space. oceans contracted, to what coastline extended all the way California’s was the Farallon Islands! San Francisco Bay now are an inland tule marsh full of wildlife. sage black black similar mastadon skull of a juvenile skull of a juvenile Golden Gate Bridge future location of the future Farallon Ridge Farallon American mastodons, American mastodons, in build to Asian elephants, were distantly distantly were Asian elephants, in build to to mammoths and today’s related in forests, lived primarily They elephants. and shrubs. on trees browsing our state Pacific Ocean Pacific flower, bloomed across the South bloomed across flower, as in the Pleistocene, landscape Bay it does today. California poppy, poppy, California A new spieces of pronghorn spieces of pronghorn A new These at this site. was discovered like much in herds, traveled herbivores pronghorns. today’s toyon mallard ducks mallard California lilac California The giant short-faced bears and fastest largest, the strongest, were Their wide American bears. of North to their shortsnouts appear relative to bears heads compared massive familiar today.
short-faced bear valley oak valley
reconstruction of a reconstruction West View West Appendix 6.2: Land Mammals of the Irvingtonian Age Interpretive Sign 2 Specimen from the Specimen from Pits Tar La Brea From The Mammoth Site From Inc. SD, of Hot Springs, Specimen from the Specimen from Pits Tar La Brea Western horse Western (Eqqus occidentalis) bear short-faced (Arctodus simus) (Arctodus simus) ground sloth ground (Megalonyx spp.) Columbian mammoth colmubi) (Mammuthus Tarantian Rancholabrean Holocene Ionian 1 coyote Many animals survive nearly animals survive nearly Many Irvingtonian Calabrian of the of Quaternary Pleistocene (Ice Age) Time (Millions of Years Ago) Years Time (Millions of Geologic Timescale Geologic 2 Blancan Gelasian opossum Epoch Period Geologic Age North American North Land Mammal Age Land Mammal mostly mostly raccoon IrvingtonianAge
Thousands of fossils, dating from 1,800,000 to 240,000 years years 1,800,000 to 240,000 dating from in what is now excavated were ago, Historical Park and nearby Sabercat of this remarkable Because locations. that time period is described discovery, American Land “Irvingtonian North as the Irvington after Fremont’s Age,” Mammal to the right shown The skeletons found. were complete skeletons few Very District. here. found illustrate species that were but American sites, other North from are unchanged from their Ice Age ancestors, including ground squirrells, raccoons, opossums, and coyotes. Though and coyotes. opossums, raccoons, squirrells, including ground Age ancestors, Ice their unchanged from the Irvingtonian on the geologic timescale history--the Era is recent dinosaurs the distant past, it sounds like today. are the same as they arranged and the continents were 63 million years, had been extinct for These familiar faces are Irvingtonian mammals, too! Irvingtonian are These familiar faces mammals,
California ground squirrell ground California Land Mammals Mammals Land Appendix 6.3: In Search of Fossils Interpretive Sign 3 from the from University of California, Berkeley, Ruben A. Stirton, began Stirton, A. Ruben Berkeley, of California, University horse pits after a fossilized in the Irvington gravel excavations that the He and his colleagues realized there. was found jaw an and found Pleistocene fossils, contained early site probably Stirtonmentored in his career, Later to science. antelope new the Irvingtonian on to define went Savage Savage. Donald E. Age in 1951. Land Mammal American North In 1936, a young paleontologist a young In 1936, Dr. Ruben Dr. Stirton A. contribution of the Boy Paleontologists marked the beginning of an ongoing the beginning of an ongoing Paleontologists marked contribution of the Boy to this that continues and researchers the local community between relationship as a park. Canyon Sabercat preserve and helped day, The “Boy Paleontologists” excavating fossils at Bell Quarry. at Bell Quarry. fossils Paleontologists” excavating “Boy The in 1868 on the Hayward Hayward in 1868 on the a group of boys from Hayward, Hayward, from of boys a group Fault, Dr. Lorenzo Gordon Yates, a dentist, discovered fossils on fossils discovered a dentist, Yates, Gordon Lorenzo Dr. Fault, were Many Road in the Irvington Osgood what is now District. In and mammoths. camelids, extinct Pleistocene horses, identified as that was the most of a mastadon jaw a tusk and he excavated 1871, at the time. in California discovered complete jaw After a large earthquake earthquake After a large
Dr. Lorenzo Lorenzo Dr. Yates Gordon
The “Boy The “Boy Paleontologists,” In Search of Fossils of Search In excavated fossils in the Bell Quarry from1943 to1959. Led by Wesley Gordon, Gordon, Wesley Led by to1959. in the Bell Quarry fossils from1943 excavated The species. 58 different unearthed from about 150,000 fossils the boys The “Boy Paleontologists” excavating fossils at Bell Quarry, led by Wesley Gordon (center). Gordon Wesley led by at Bell Quarry, fossils Paleontologists” excavating “Boy The Appendix 6.4: Under the Canopy Interpretive Sign 4 depend and other on the broad canopies of coast on the broad including the shelter, oaks for live warbler. yellow-rumped versatile spend winter in These birds other and woodlands streamside such as this open areas somewhat America. to Central all the way mammals rely on urban forests and urban forests on mammals rely hunting and raising grasslands for These omniverous their young. dusk at dawn, active animals are the only are and they and at night, that can climb trees! fox Migratory birds foxes Grey
Amphibians, reptiles and fishes, reptiles Amphibians, including tree frogs, rely on shade and habitat on shade and habitat rely frogs, including tree and other willows, buckeyes, oaks, by created eat insects and sometimes frogs Tree riparian trees. The toe pads of these are. as they spiders as large them to climb vertical animals allow remarkable their prey. to ambush surfaces in order
This coast live oak This coast live tall and stretches stands 60 feet Because of its age, wide. 90 feet the City of Fremont size and beauty, in 2012, Tree designated it as a Landmark the throughout joining other exceptional trees City. Under the Canopy the Under Appendix 6.5: Laguna Creek Watershed Interpretive Sign 5 engineered channel engineered Sabercat Creek, immediately after channel stabilization and replanting, after channel stabilization and replanting, immediately Creek, Sabercat over plantings grow New hazards. better habitat and reduced providing time. culverted channel culverted is one of several streams within the 25-square-mile within the 25-square-mile streams is one of several and other landscape changes have taken their toll on the taken changes have and other landscape unmodified channel Laguna Creek watershed that drain the foothills of the Diablo Range. As these of the Diablo Range. watershed that drain the foothills Laguna Creek from travel they Fremont, ground in urban lower flatter, across flow creeks lined engineered and concrete culverts open channels to underground natural, to San Francisco Bay. to Mud Slough on the way flow they Finally, channels. Sabercat Creek showing significant bank erosion and undercutting, reducing undercutting, and erosion bank significant showing Creek Sabercat habitat value. Urbanization Sabercat Creek Sabercat health of Sabercat Creek, causing erosion and bank failure that is bad for the bad for that is and bank failure causing erosion Creek, health of Sabercat channel stability, to improve continues restoration Ongoing and wildlife. creek water quality and habitat. 0.5 miles ree
Mission