Fossil-hunting diver says he has found a large section of mastodon tusk off Florida’s coast

By CURT ANDERSON
Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — At first, fossil-hunting diver Alex Lundberg thought the lengthy object on the sea floor off Florida’s Gulf Coast was a piece of wood. But he says it turned out to be something far rarer: a large section of tusk from a long-extinct mastodon. Lundberg and his diver companion had found fossils in the same area before, including mammoth teeth, bones of an ancient jaguar and parts of a dire wolf. They also have found small pieces of mastodon tusk, but nothing this big and intact. The tusk measures about 4 feet and weighs 70 pounds. That is according to Lundberg. It’s currently sitting in a glass case in his living room. State officials will determine its scientific value.