A team of scientists has unveiled a baby mammoth that has been almost perfectly preserved for 50,000 years in the thawing permafrost of eastern Siberia.
Anatoly Nikolayev, head of the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Laboratory at Northeastern Federal University in Yakutsk, eastern Siberia, described the mammoth as a “unique research discovery” and highlighted its extraordinary state of preservation. He mentioned that there were no signs of injury to the head, torso, ears, or mouth.
NEFU scientists called the mammoth, named Yana, the best-preserved specimen in the world in a press release on Monday.
The carcass of the baby mammoth Yana was unveiled after its discovery in the Yana River basin in eastern Siberia, marking the seventh baby mammoth found in the world. It is 4 feet tall, weighs around 400 pounds, and is less than 6.6 feet long.
Maxim Cheprasov, head of the university’s Mammoth Museum, expressed that the discovery of Yana is expected to provide valuable insights into mammoth development, adaptive characteristics, Ice Age habitats, and other essential aspects of mammoth life.
Yana was found by local residents in the Batagaika Crater, the world’s largest permafrost crater, as it continues to expand due to climate change.
Gavril Novgorodov/Reuters file
The mammoth was estimated to be about 1 year old at the time of its death. Scientists at the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Research Institute are currently conducting further experiments to confirm Yana’s exact age at the time of its death.
The institute is collaborating with genetic researchers from other parts of the Russian Federation to gain more insights into Yana’s life and environment.
Due to climate change, Russia’s permafrost is thawing, leading to surprising prehistoric discoveries in recent years.
In 2020, scientists in Yakutia in northeastern Siberia uncovered a 32,000-year-old saber-toothed tiger mummy. The following year, in 2021, researchers found a 44,000-year-old wolf carcass in the same area.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
