When people think of prehistoric giants, Hollywood’s Jurassic Park usually comes to mind. Trinidad and Tobago, however, offers a reality far closer to the Ice Age.
Palaeontologists and petroleum engineers from the United States have unearthed fossils belonging to at least ten types of large mammals that once lived here, long before humans arrived on the islands.
Imagine giant ground sloths, palaeollamas and armadillos roaming vast savannahs and swampy marshes. Most of the fossils have been found in the south, particularly in the Forest Reserve area, where researchers believe more deposits may remain.
From a palaeontological standpoint, Trinidad and Tobago’s Ice Age specimens were largely discovered during early oil exploration between the 1920s and the 1980s. As heavy earthworks were carried out to prepare drilling sites, ancient fossils were unearthed, including vertebrate, invertebrate and plant material.
The Pleistocene, the geological epoch that lasted from about 2.5 million to 10,000 years ago, offers a unique window into the islands’ past.
Dr Ryan Mohammed, a biologist at The University of the West Indies (UWI) and a council member of the National Trust of Trinidad and Tobago (NTTT), said the fossils provide an important record of life before and around the arrival of humans.
“They give us a snapshot up until man first colonised what would have been Trinidad, while we were still connected to the South American mainland,” he said.
“We have not documented any large predators as yet, but that does not mean they were not present. This is just one reason why our fossil record is unlike what has been found in South America or other Caribbean islands. Secondly, our Ice Age record also includes several insects, which again makes our assemblage unique.”
The records also provide an account of past productivity and establish an important baseline between about 20,000 years ago and the present, giving researchers a clearer lens through which to assess current climate data.
From large animals and insect remains to preserved plant material, each piece contributes to a broader understanding of the environment that existed thousands of years ago.
Key historical finds include a giant armadillo carapace and skull discovered by Apex Oil Company in the 1920s, which are now housed in the United States. Several other specimens were collected by Elizabeth Wing in the 1960s for the Florida Museum of Natural History.
Material extracted by McFee and Chandler in the 1980s, consisting mostly of larger bone material, has since been repatriated and is now housed at the UWI Zoological Museum and the NTTT.
Crucially, remains such as the scute of a giant armadillo have also been documented in Tobago.
“This therefore is our oldest biological evidence, indicating Trinidad and Tobago were physically connected to each other,” Mohammed said.
Protection and preservation
Fossils fall under the National Trust Act of Trinidad and Tobago and, once listed, receive full protection.
“Ideally, we would like all fossils to be catalogued in one database,” Mohammed told Guardian Media.
The UWI Zoological Museum already maintains a database and houses many of the remains. UWI has also partnered with the NTTT and the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles on workshops covering fossil cleaning, preparation, restoration and preservation.
An MoU now links the three institutions in ongoing collaborative research.
“This facilitates the sharing of knowledge and promotes our artefacts not as trophies for collections but as material important to science,” Mohammed said.
He noted that archaeological and palaeontological materials remain significantly threatened by land development, quarrying and natural erosion.
While development cannot be stopped, those undertaking such activities should remain mindful of the potential historical and scientific value of anything unearthed during construction or excavation.
Mohammed said artefacts encountered during development are often taken for private collections or discarded, resulting in the loss of valuable academic knowledge for both science and the country.
Research is continuing to shed light on Trinidad and Tobago’s prehistoric heritage.
An undergraduate student is currently in the United States examining the giant armadillo to determine whether Trinidad was home to a single species or multiple species. Researchers are also exploring areas with natural oil seeps that could contain additional deposits.
Several projects are under way and additional volunteers are urgently needed, as more than 50 per cent of the holdings remain unidentified.
At the same time, the NTTT is advancing efforts to strengthen protection for future generations. Two amendments to its regulations would provide listing status and protection for archaeological and palaeontological sites and remains once they receive parliamentary approval.
Education is key
Mohammed believes more can be done to raise awareness of the nation’s extinct wildlife. He suggested that UWI and the NTTT expand their outreach through social media, websites and revived community workshops.
While academic papers are valuable, he said a greater challenge is the integration of archaeology and palaeontology into the national curriculum, as these subjects remain largely absent from primary and secondary school syllabuses.
Members of the public can view physical specimens through the UWI Zoological Museum’s curator or attend upcoming displays by Ice Age Fossil Outreach.
The NTTT recently hosted a joint event to commemorate United Nations World Indigenous Peoples’ Day at the Banwari Trace Archaeological Site in San Francique.
“We chose to have them in south Trinidad as the site is under the custodianship and management of the NTTT and it is also of great spiritual significance to the First Peoples,” Mohammed said.
Both exhibitions, he said, attracted strong interest, demonstrating the public’s appetite to come face to face with Trinidad and Tobago’s oldest chapters.
