From Africa to North America, the search for the earliest humans has captured imaginations and provoked debate for decades. Join San Bernardino County Museum paleontologist Eric Scott for his Fathers’ Day weekend illustrated presentation, “On the Trail of Early Humans” on Saturday, June 20, at 2:00 p.m. The lecture at the County Museum in Redlands is included with paid museum admission.

 

Scott’s presentation will examine some earlier finds of “earliest man” in the Old World, particularly East Africa, with an update based on fossils reported earlier this year from Ethiopia. These fossils, representing the earliest-known evidence of our own genus, Homo, have forced new reconsideration of the human family tree.

 

The lecture will also discuss a different sort of search for early humans: the quest to find remains of the first peoples to arrive in North America, near the end of the Pleistocene Epoch – the “Ice Ages.” This hunt has long focused on our own backyard, the American southwest. Scott will examine some of the local sites where the search for early peoples spurred large-scale investigations, which were abandoned when evidence of those peoples was not forthcoming. He’ll examine fossil sites throughout the Mojave Desert where fossils of Ice Age creatures are abundant, but remains of early humans are absent despite decades of searching.

 

“On the Trail of Early Humans” and the County Museum’s other exciting programs and exhibits reflect efforts by the Board of Supervisors to achieve the Countywide Vision by celebrating arts, culture, and education in the county, creating quality of life for residents and visitors.

 

The San Bernardino County Museum is at the California Street exit from Interstate 10 in Redlands. General admission is $10 (adult), $8 (military or senior), $7 (student with identification), and $5 (children ages 5 to 12). Children under five and Museum Association members are admitted free. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.sbcountymuseum.org. The museum is accessible to persons with disabilities.