The Natural Trap Cave project—the Ice Age fossil excavation in the Bighorn Mountains led by Dr. Julie Meachen that several NRMG members have volunteered on for years—was featured prominently in Smithsonian Magazine’s June 2025 issue. The cave, a 85-foot-deep pit in Wyoming’s Madison Limestone formation, has served as a natural death trap for at least 20 mammal species and five bird species over tens of thousands of years: mammoths, dire wolves, American lions, American cheetahs, ancient horses, and bison, with American cheetah remains particularly abundant. Paleontologists use multiple techniques—sifting for bones, extracting ancient DNA fragments, and analyzing prehistoric pollen—to understand what the site reveals about late-Pleistocene species diversity, ecological systems, and climate patterns. If you’ve ever rigged the entrance pit at NTC or sorted bone fragments in a field tent, some of that work is now showing up in print. The article covers what the dig is turning up: the site is rewriting parts of the late-Pleistocene picture for North America, with findings suggesting human presence approximately 17,000 years ago. Pending permit approval, the 2025 field season is targeted for June 30–July 13.
