Professor Florentino Amanghino, an Argentine scientist (1854 – 1911), was the founding father of South American paleontology and a driving force in the field world wide.
However, according to one source, a curious gift was once delivered to his office from the region of his country known as Patagonia that would baffle the Professor and cause him to question his scientific beliefs. Inside, according to an attached note, was a partial specimen–a piece of hide–of an animal the locals had killed but were unable to identify.
Shaken, Amanghino asked a colleague how old he estimated that bit of skin to be. The man agreed that it couldn’t have been more than a year old, given its fresh and pliable state. “What sort of hide is it,” the man asked.
The professor paused, knowing his words wouldn’t be believed, “It is from a giant sloth.”
As expected, the Professor’s colleague sputtered his incredulity at such a preposterous assertion. “Are you mad? The giant sloth died out 25
million years ago!”
Professor Amanghino remained convinced he had correctly identified the sample for the remainder of his career, begging the question: Do extinct creatures still roam the wild and remote environs of Patagonia?