**Dr. Wayne Bischoff** (Envicom Corporation - Director of Cultural Resources) pictured with **Dr. Austin Hendy** (Natural History Museum - Assistant Curator) and **Milad Esfahani** (San Pedro - Student).

Envicom Corporation is supporting a construction project at San Pedro High School that uncovered a significant collection of marine fossils. Some date back over 9 million years, to a time when the Palos Verdes Peninsula was underwater.

Envicom’s Paleontologist & Archaeologist, Nicole Diem.

Fossilized vertebra from an extinct dolphin species.

Envicom discovered in 2023 the largest marine fossil bonebed in Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Dr. Wayne Bischoff of Envicom has been working with staff from the Natural History Museum of Los Angles County to document the Late Miocene (8.7-million years ago) discovery. The millions of fossils found at the discovery site came from fish, sharks, dolphins, whales, sea turtles, seabirds, invertebrates, and ocean and shore plants. Many of the species discovered are now extinct, but many can still be found off California’s coast today.

As part of the discovery response, fossil rocks and samples will be provided to several educational institutions, including the Cabrillo Aquarium, for public display, interpretation, and education. Six large fossil rocks were recently set up in the Aquarium’s public garden, which was announced in the Bulletin of the Southern California Paleontological Society. Dr. Bischoff and Dr. Austin Hendy of the Natural History Museum will also be talking about the discovery at the Natural History Museum on February 4th , 2024.

Links to Articles/Features

BBC News (Spetember 19, 2024)
The Guardian (Great Britain Newspaper)
LA Times (September 13, 2024)
Business Today (India’s business news magazine)
WPLG Local 10 (ABC Network affiliate in Miami)
NY Post (September 11, 2024)
Yahoo News (September 10, 2024)
AOL.com (September 10, 2024)
LAUSD Press Conference (September 9, 2024)
FOX 11 News (Fossils Interview)
KCAL/KCBS News (Broadcast Clip)
LAist (September 9, 2024)
Daily Breeze (September 11, 2024)