New research published in the Quaternary Science Review analyzes beetle remains from the La Brea tar pits to show that the environment of southern California has been relatively stable over the last 50,000 years – warmer and drier than had been previously thought. Even though La Brea is more famous for the assemblage of megafauna it has provided to museums, it is also a rich source for information on past climate changes. The study calls for the greater use of insects as a climatological proxy: because these beetles adapted and migrated easily, their presence and morphology over three lengthy periods during the last 50,000 years offers a clearly legible record of past climate stability. Read the full article here.
Adapted from ScienceDaily