As well as horse skulls, the University of Calgary team has uncovered skeletons of long-extinct animal species including the helmeted musk oxen. It was a stroke of fate that the site was found at all. A reservoir built over the water bed in 1949 was drained in 1998 to allow construction of a spillway. Shayne Tolman, an elementary school teacher from Cardston, Alta., discovered Clovis spearheads and other artifacts while he was playing with his sons in the area. He notified a local archaeologist and the examination was underway.
Scientists are in a race against time.
With the reservoir due to be filled by summer rains, a team will be at the site from late April to late May to document and preserve their finds. The drought conditions of southern Alberta have not helped. When the site is exposed, gusting winds of between 100 and 170 kilometres per hour are constantly eroding the sand. Up to 10 centimetres can be removed overnight. If you could keep the reservoir full except when we wanted to work on the site it would be ideal.