The key to understanding prehistory is paleontology, the study of fossilized remains of ancient life.

Fossil Treasures of the Anza-Borrego Desert tells the story of North America’s hidden past by examining the incredibly rich fossil record of the Anza-Borrego region, which offers the best glimpse into this prehistoric world.

 Anza-Borrego’s more than 550 types of fossil plants and animals, ranging from microscopic pollen and water fleas to mammoth tusks and giant camel skeletons, have been the focus of ongoing research, study, and interpretation since the mid-1850s.

 The results of the past several decades of study by leading experts from across the nation can now be seen in this comprehensive work.

Early chapters explore background themes and concepts before raising the curtain on Anza-Borrego’s last seven million years, starting with the Imperial Sea.

Central chapters present the real stars of the story—individual groups of animals; the bestiary reads like a Who's Who of many of the most unique fossil vertebrates of their time—bathtub-sized tortoises, the sabertooth cat, massive ground sloths, the giant short-faced bear, the largest known mammoth, and the largest bird ever to fly northern hemisphere skies.

Closing chapters discuss intercontinental connections, fossil footprints, and paleoclimates and environmental change in the Anza-Borrego Desert region.