How can one survive tar pits once trapped? This was probably asked by the only human who was trapped in the great tar pits. He might have got an answer but he didn't have the luck to benefit from the answer. Consequently, his genes ended up in the pits and didn't get passed to later generations.
An animal would struggle but struggling only makes it sink deeper. It would call for help too, just like the baby mammoth calling its mom and getting the mom trapped as well.
We human are different. Suppose it was his lucky day. He called for help and his best friend, pairing with him in the hunting today, rushed to rescue. What must he do first?
He must yell, "Stop! Danger! Don't get anywhere close." He must realize that this was not a situation that more people in the tar pits could help so he must keep his best friend out of the tar pits first. Then what must he do?
He must explain the situation and come up with a rescue plan with his friend. If his friend could reach him on a solid ground, he could be pulled out just like people pulling out rods from a tar pool in Page Museum. More likely, there was no solid ground close to him. Now the rescue must rely on some tools.
His friend happened to have some rope, which was prepared for tying up preys. He managed to free one hand and raised it high. His friend tied a hoop and lassoed the hand. He clinched to the rope with all his might while his friend pulled the rope firmly and steadily. Bit by bit, he was out of the tar pits.
He survived but he was too sticky to hug his friend. So he told his friend that he would pay pack with five buffalo. His friend laughed, "You can just pull me out next time."
They went back to the tribe to tell everyone about the story and the tribe told other tribes nearby. Since then, nobody was ever consumed by the great tar pits. What a triumph!
An intelligent species, like human, differs from other species in the
abilities of judging the situation, communicating effectively, cooperating socially, using tools to extend physical limits, learning from experiences to avoid repetitive mistakes and passing all that, i.e. knowledge, to later generations. Without any of such abilities, we would certainly see much more human remains in the great tar pits.
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