Steven Wallace

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

An episode of PBS Eons, a popular science storytelling platform with millions of subscribers, is spotlighting one of East Tennessee State University’s most remarkable fossil finds — and the ETSU professor who helped bring it to light.

The episode, which explores the prehistoric evolution of red pandas, cites the groundbreaking research of Dr. Steven C. Wallace, an ETSU professor and curator at the Gray Fossil Site and Museum. Wallace’s work, particularly a book chapter he authored, provided the foundation for much of the video’s script and visuals.

“Having this story shared on such a respected national platform is an honor,” said Wallace. “It’s also a great opportunity to highlight the incredible fossil record we have right here in Appalachia — and to show how this region continues to play a central role in our understanding of the past.”

The spotlighted animal, Pristinailurus bristoli — named after Larry Bristol, also known as Bristol’s Appalachian panda — is a distant and much larger relative of today’s red panda. While researchers have found most red panda fossils in Eurasia, they are fragmentary at best.

The Gray Fossil Site has yielded two nearly complete skeletons of Pristinailurus, offering rare insight into the species’ structure and behavior.

Discovered in 2000 during a highway construction project in Gray, the Gray Fossil Site has since become a world-renowned paleontological treasure. It preserves a rich ecosystem dating back roughly 5 million years — a time when rhinos, tapirs, alligators, giant flying squirrels and red panda relatives once roamed what is now Northeast Tennessee.

“Dr. Wallace’s expertise has helped transform a one-time construction zone into a site of international scientific significance,” said Dr. Kimberly D. McCorkle, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “This collaboration with PBS Eons reinforces ETSU’s role as a national leader in discovery and as the Flagship of Appalachia.”

The video, which draws heavily from Wallace’s published research, highlights the evolutionary link between Pristinailurus and its more famous cousin, the modern red panda. It also illustrates the Gray Fossil Site’s importance in understanding the global history of the Ailuridae family.

The Gray Fossil Site and Museum is operated by the Don Sundquist Center of Excellence in Paleontology and is open to the public year-round. Visitors can see fossil preparation in action, explore interactive exhibits and learn more about the region’s prehistoric past.

The red panda episode is available on YouTube.