Researchers from the WA Museum Boola Bardip are hoping to recover between four and five skeletons of the Diprotodon from a remote mine site in the Pilbara.
Skeletons belonging to a gigantic Australian proto-wombat have been unearthed by scientists in Western Australia's north, shedding light on the state's rich natural history.Five sites with Diprotodon bones have been found in WAWestern Australia Museum's palaeontology team descended on a remote mine site at Du Boulay Creek, in the Pilbara, where several Diprotodon fossils have lurked beneath the surface for tens of thousands of years.
Related to the modern-day wombat and koala, the diprotodon is the largest known marsupial to have ever lived, growing up to four metres in length and 1.7 metres tall, and reaching weights of almost three tonnes. An image of a what a Diprotodon is believed to have looked like, by zoology and palaeontology artist Peter Schouten.On the site, the dig team is hoping to recover four or five skeletons, including skulls, jaws and teeth, which are partly visible and embedded in the hard creek bed.
The creatures were first discovered in 1991, with the original skeleton now on display in the WA Museum Boola Bardip.The Du Boulay Creek site, in the Fortescue River floodplain, 1450 kilometres north of Perth, is believed to be unique because the remains of several Diprotodons are near each other. It is believed the presence of both adult and juvenile skeletons could mean the site was on a major migration route.This site is the fifth of its kind in Western Australia, with other Diprotodon fossils discovered in remote locations including the Nullarbor Plain.
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