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Scientists unveil 50,000-year-old baby mammoth remains | Scientists unveil 50,000-year-old baby mammoth remains |
(32 minutes later) | |
The harsh cold of Siberia has preserved the baby mammoth's remains almost perfectly | The harsh cold of Siberia has preserved the baby mammoth's remains almost perfectly |
Russian scientists have unveiled the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth found in thawing permafrost in the remote Yakutia region of Siberia during the summer. | Russian scientists have unveiled the remains of a 50,000-year-old baby mammoth found in thawing permafrost in the remote Yakutia region of Siberia during the summer. |
They say "Yana" - who has been named after the river basin where she was discovered - is the world's best-preserved mammoth carcass. | They say "Yana" - who has been named after the river basin where she was discovered - is the world's best-preserved mammoth carcass. |
Weighing in at over 100kg (15st 10lb), and measuring 120cm (4ft) tall and 200cm long, Yana is estimated to have been only about one year old when she died. | Weighing in at over 100kg (15st 10lb), and measuring 120cm (4ft) tall and 200cm long, Yana is estimated to have been only about one year old when she died. |
Before this, there were only six similar discoveries in the world - five in Russia and one in Canada. | Before this, there were only six similar discoveries in the world - five in Russia and one in Canada. |
Yana was found in the Batagaika crater, the world's largest permafrost (ground that is permanently frozen) crater, by people living nearby. | Yana was found in the Batagaika crater, the world's largest permafrost (ground that is permanently frozen) crater, by people living nearby. |
The residents "were in the right place at the right time", the head of the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Laboratory said. | The residents "were in the right place at the right time", the head of the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Laboratory said. |
"They saw that the mammoth had almost completely thawed out" and decided to build a make-shift stretcher to lift the mammoth to the surface, said Maxim Cherpasov. | "They saw that the mammoth had almost completely thawed out" and decided to build a make-shift stretcher to lift the mammoth to the surface, said Maxim Cherpasov. |
"As a rule, the part that thaws out first, especially the trunk, is often eaten by modern predators or birds," he told the Reuters news agency. | "As a rule, the part that thaws out first, especially the trunk, is often eaten by modern predators or birds," he told the Reuters news agency. |
But "even though the forelimbs have already been eaten, the head is remarkably well preserved", he added. | But "even though the forelimbs have already been eaten, the head is remarkably well preserved", he added. |
A researcher at the museum, Gavril Novgorodov, told Reuters the mammoth "probably got trapped" in a swamp, and was "thus preserved for several tens of thousands of years". | A researcher at the museum, Gavril Novgorodov, told Reuters the mammoth "probably got trapped" in a swamp, and was "thus preserved for several tens of thousands of years". |
Yana is being studied at the North-Eastern Federal University in the region's capital Yakutsk. | Yana is being studied at the North-Eastern Federal University in the region's capital Yakutsk. |
Scientists are now conducting tests to confirm when it died. | Scientists are now conducting tests to confirm when it died. |
It is not the only pre-historic discovery to have been found in Russia's vast permafrost in recent years - as long-frozen ground starts to thaw because of climate change. | It is not the only pre-historic discovery to have been found in Russia's vast permafrost in recent years - as long-frozen ground starts to thaw because of climate change. |
Just last month, scientists in the same region showed off the remains of a partial, mummified body of a sabre-tooth cat, external, thought to be just under 32,000 years old. | |
And earlier this year the remains of a 44,000-year-old wolf were also uncovered. | And earlier this year the remains of a 44,000-year-old wolf were also uncovered. |