Early humans heavily relied on using spears and other sharp weapons that they could easily make and use to hunt. One such weapon was the “atlatl (at-lat-el) dart,” one of which was uncovered recently by a helicopter pilot in Yukon. The atlatl darts were invented before other older weapons like bows and arrows.
As each weapon in those days was crafted by hand, the creators took great pride in their work and even took careful time to decorate each dart to their liking. Each weapon was carved with a different pattern to differentiate between them all. Atlatl darts were made to hold and launch spears and ensured that the weapon would travel much further than if it was thrown.
The Basket
Not all of the findings necessarily revolve around hunting because the early humans were of course gatherers, too. Among all of the artifacts found within the Yukon area was an intricately carved birch basket. Scientists dated the basket to nearly 650 years ago, and believe it was used to gather berries, and for carrying food and other items.
The container, which was discovered back in 2003, was meticulously woven. The dimensions of the basket were 2.3 inches high and nearly 10 inches wide. These baskets could be so tightly woven that they were even used to transport water. They would also use them for arts and crafts purposes, at times.
WWI Remnants
During WWI, rival soldiers often fought at extreme elevations – which may have been good for seeing your enemy coming, but it was certainly a terrible experience for anyone that had to go up that high, and especially for those that had to stay up there for extended periods of time.
Army leaders had to get creative to stay on top of things, so they formed specialized groups of men and trained them to do battle at over 6,000 feet in the air. Unfortunately, this often meant that they suffered frostbite and ultimately froze to death on top of the mountains. Scientists have discovered bodies of soldiers that date back over 100 years ago.
Frozen Fish
Now, it may be pretty commonplace to find fish that are frozen during winter. After all, fish can’t exactly get up and walk out of the river when winter hits. But this time, scientists didn’t just find a fish; they found one that froze while it was eating…another fish. Lucky for us, a fisherman found this and reported it.
During the winter time, fish tend to swim to the bottom of their watery home since when it freezes over, the warm water typically descends. So, they usually gather in schools and hang out near the bottom until it starts to get warmer outside. In this case, the water froze so quickly that not all the fish made it.
The Woolly Rhino
As often as it is that someone seems to stumble upon a woolly mammoth (so often that there are literally mammoth tusk hunters) it isn’t so often that one finds a woolly rhino – especially not a baby one. But that’s exactly what happened to a hunter in Yakutia, Russia, in September of 2015. Scientists claimed that the rhino was only about 18 months old when she died.
Yakutia, which is more commonly called “Sakha,” has some of the lowest temperatures in the world – so you can imagine that it would be pretty hard for a baby animal to survive in the winters out there, even with a thick coat of fur. The little woolly was named “Sasha."