Mastodon Bone Under a Microscope

Cedar Creek Mastodon bone cell structure
Cedar Creek Mastodon bone cell structure
Cedar Creek Mastodon tusk cementum cross-section
Cedar Creek Mastodon tusk cementum cross-section
Mastodon bone cross-section
Mastodon bone cross-section

Ever wonder what the cell structure of a Mastodon bone looks like?

Karen Leone, Gray & Pape’s paleoethnobotanist, took some photos of bone and tusk specimens seen under her microscope while she was analyzing plant remains associated with a possible Paleoindian mastodon butchering site in Morrow County (north-central), Ohio. The Cedar Creek Mastodon site, under the direction of Dr. Nigel Brush, is being investigated by students from Ashland University and the College of Wooster as well as volunteer professional and avocational archaeologists from around the state.

These images are microscopic views of the mastodon bone and tusk cementum.