St. Paul police investigating skull found in wooded area along Highway 61

St. Paul police are investigating a skull found in a wooded area along Highway 61 on Friday.

The medical examiner believes the skull is human bone, but there aren't any other immediate indications who it might have belonged to, police spokesman Mike Ernster said.

Police searched the area where the skull was found, but they didn't find anything else linking to the bone, Ernster said.

It isn't clear how long the skull had been there or even how long ago the person died.

"The investigation will continue as far as the age of the bone," he said. "It could possibly be an old bone that has been in the park for tens of years. But it's really unknown who it belongs to right now."

A father and son found the skull on Friday while hiking up a bluff in the western side of Battle Creek Regional Park and reported it to police. The bone was sitting just off a rugged pathway in the park, Ernster said.