Urumaco is a town in the state of Falc�n in Venezuela. It is of world importance for its fossils. The arid climate of the region means that the fossils are not hidden by vegetation. They were first made known to science by geologists who came across them while looking for oil (which is abundant in some parts of Venezuela). The paleontological wealth of Urumaco makes it the most fossil-rich zone of northern South America.
Stupendemys geographicus, the largest turtle ever to have existed was found here in the 1970s by researchers from Harvard University. More recently publicity has been attracted by discoveries of the giant rodent Phoberomys pattersoni from the Miocene epoch.
Since 2000 there has been a museum in the town, the Museo Paleonto l�gico de Urumaco. Also, in Taratara, a small town near Coro, there is an Archeology and Paleontology Park, where the oldest human remains in Venezuela from 15,000 years ago, can be seen. Also, there are petroglyphs 14,000 years old that give an account of the early inhabitants of the area
Venezuela is situated in the tropics. The northern coast lies almost entirely between 10 and 11 degrees north latitude, and the southernmost tip of Amazonas State is less than 1 degree north. The total area of Venezuela is a little over 900,000 km. Broadly, three regions can be recognized in the topography of Venezuela: deserts and mountains in the north bordering
