Laguna Hills in Orange County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Costeau Pit

Photographed by Adam Margolis, November 30, 2025

1. Costeau Pit Marker

Inscription. This prehistoric giant ground sloth represents the Ice Age animals that flourished here 40,000 years ago. In 1905, sloth bones and teeth were recovered from this site with the fossils of bison, horses, camels, mammoths, dire wolves and saber-tooth cats. These animals lived by a perennial stream now Alicia Parkway, in grasslands similar to African savannas. Costeau Park was established to preserve the thousands of fossils that remain buried beneath the surface.

Erected 1999 by City of Laguna Hills.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Anthropology & Archaeology • Paleontology • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1905.

Location. 33° 35.921′ N, 117° 41.512′ W. Marker is in Laguna Hills, California, in Orange County. It can be reached from Costeau Street, on the left. The marker is located in Cousteau Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 25081 Costeau Street, Laguna Hills CA 92653, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Los Angeles

and in the Peninsular

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Ranges.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Mormon Battalion Marker (approx. 0.6 miles away); Aliso Creek Adobes (approx. 0.6 miles away); Juan Avila Adobe (approx. 0.7 miles away); Sycamore Park (approx. ¾ mile away); Charlotte and Louise Moulton (approx. one mile away); Nellie Gail and Charlotte Moulton (approx. one mile away); Fossil Reef (approx. 1.1 miles away); Whale Fossil (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Laguna Hills.

Photographed by Adam Margolis, November 30, 2025

2. Costeau Pit Marker

Photographed by Adam Margolis, November 30, 2025

3. Costeau Pit Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 30, 2026, by Adam Margolis of Mission Viejo, California. This page has been viewed 40 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 30, 2026, by Adam Margolis of Mission Viejo, California. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.