Ancient Bison Fossils
(Bison antiquus)
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Skull fragment (ANSP 12990)
This ancient bison fossil of contains part of the back of the skull (1) as well as most of the right horn core (2). This is the front view. An old museum label (3) is also visible. The specimen has been lightly coated with shellac.
A nickel at the bottom is shown for scale.
Lower Jaw (ANSP 12976)
This is a nearly complete jaw of the ancient bison. Like other ruminents (e.g., cows, sheep, deer, pronghorns and camels), bison teeth are specialized for feeding on plants. Well-developed premolars (1) and molars (2) occupy the cheek region, but there is a long gap between them and the front incisors; the incisors are missing from this specimen, but their sockets (3) are visible. A similar set of cheek teeth are present in the upper jaw, but there are no upper incisors.
A nickel is shown at the top for scale.