The Last Giant of Beringia: The Mystery of the Bering Land Bridge

Dan O'Neill

Apr 2009 · Sold by Basic Books

About this ebook

The intriguing theory of a land bridge periodically linking Siberia and Alaska during the coldest pulsations of the Ice Ages had been much debated since Jose de Acosta, a Spanish missionary working in Mexico and Peru, first proposed the idea of a connection between the continents in 1589. But proof of the land bridge - now named Beringia after eighteenth-century Danish explorer Vitus Bering - eluded scientists until an inquiring geologist named Dave Hopkins emerged from rural New England and set himself to the task of solving the mystery. Through the life story of Hopkins, The Last Giant of Beringia reveals the fascinating science detective story that at last confirmed the existence of the land bridge that served as the intercontinental migration route for such massive Ice Age beasts as woolly mammoths, steppe bison, giant stag-moose, dire wolves, short-faced bears, and saber-toothed cats - and for the first humans to enter the New World from Asia. After proving unambiguously that the land bridge existed, Hopkins went on to show that the Beringian landscape cannot have been the "polar desert" that many had claimed, but provided forage enough to sustain a diverse menagerie of Ice Age behemoths.

Ratings and reviews

This book turned out to be a joyful romp through time for me, and I loved the places it led. Mental images of grizzled scientists in mud-covered digging gear, and damp socks, brushingt dust from fossilized insect wings which had lain in the soil for forty-thousand years just delighted me no end and has restored my faith in the human race - thank you, Dan O'Neill and Dave Hopkins!

About the author

Dan O'Neill is the author of A Land Gone Lonesome and The Last Giant of Beringia. He was named Alaska Historian of the Year by the Alaska Historical Society for The Firecracker Boys. He lives in Fairbanks, Alaska.