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Ancient life in Oklahoma. A few quick terms and some really old stuff. How did Oklahoma form?. After mountains formed with the supercontinent 300 million years ago, other areas sank (this action formed basins) and filled with water Present day Oklahoma was one of these basins
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Ancient life in Oklahoma A few quick terms and some really old stuff
How did Oklahoma form? • After mountains formed with the supercontinent 300 million years ago, other areas sank (this action formed basins) and filled with water • Present day Oklahoma was one of these basins • It eroded A LOT over the next 200 million years
Energy deposits and natural resources • Pressure inside the Earth can build up and cause basins and swamps to sink even lower • Mud and sand can wash over the swamps and basins and preserve the materials under the surface • Petroleum, which is used to make gas and other products, as well as natural gas and coal are found in Oklahoma • We also have quarries (places where sand, shale, limestone, etc. can be dug out) which provide resources for construction (Which means big $$)
A few terms • Fossil- remains of plants or animals that has been preserved • Aquifer- holds water underground, can use a well to extract the water • Many places in OK still pump their water supplies from aquifers • Groundwater- fresh water found beneath the earth’s surface • Anthropologist- scientist who studies the behavior and origin of humans • Artifact- human-made tool, weapon or ornament • Such as pottery or baskets
The first humans to North America • Small groups of people crossed the “land bridge”, Beringia from Asia into North America • These people hunted large animals and were called Paleo-Indians • They also used tools made from animal bones and stones • They would follow the herds (mammoths, mastodons, bison—even camels!) • As ice melted over thousands of years it flooded the land bridge and created the Bering Strait
Big Game Hunters and Foragers • So what is the difference? • Big Game Hunters followed the herds—relocated with the food • Foragers relied more on the foodstuffs provided in nature—they still hunted but usually in smaller areas • Used the atlatl for accuracy • Both groups tried to stay close to water
petroglyphs • Are wall paintings • Could be found on caves walls or rocks • Can tell vivid stories about a culture and its appreciations
The early farmers • At the beginning of the current era (CE), foragers became the early farmers • Not done on the scale of farming today • Corn or maize, beans, pumpkins and squash were popular crops because of the climate • They did still hunt! • They still gathered! • Pottery shards found—probably made by women • Coiled the clay in layers • Stored food and could be used as containers