Russian scientists discovered something they couldn’t believe at first. They found the fossil of a 50,000-year-old mammoth, preserved practically to perfection.
They came across the remains of the prehistoric creature a few months ago, during the local summer, in the remote Siberian region of Yakutia, also known as the Republic of Sakha.
According to the researchers, it is the best-preserved mammoth in the world so far.
They found the fossil of a 50,000-year-old mammoth: the best-preserved in the world
“Yana,” named after the river basin where it was discovered, is estimated to have been only one year old when it died. Until now, there have been only six similar discoveries in the world: five in Russia and one in Canada.
This mammoth calf is 1.2 meters tall and weighs around 180 kilograms.
“This is one of the best-preserved specimens to date worldwide,” said Maxim Cheprasov, head of research at the Mammoth Museum of the Federal University of Yakutia.
The scientist, during the presentation, detailed that a total of six were found. “The previous mammoth found in Russia was the baby Yuka in 2010,” he said.
“The exact age of the animal has not yet been determined, but we assume it was approximately one year or slightly older,” he added about the recent discovery.
Where and how they found the fossil
The locals from the town of Batagai found the creature. “They were at the right time and place to see how half of the body emerged from the crater wall, at a depth of 40 meters,” they said.
They also explained that due to the weight and pressure of the earth, Yana’s body split in half. The first part fell to the bottom of the crater, and the second part, which included the pelvis and hind limbs, ended up in the permafrost and was later recovered by specialists.
The rector of the Federal University of Yakutia, Anatoli Nikolaev, was happy and expressed that a discovery like this “does not happen every year, it is truly a matter of chance and luck.”
In addition, had it happened several days or weeks later, “it would not have been as well preserved,” he added. “It is a unique event not only for our university, but for Russian and global science,” he celebrated.
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