15’000-Year-Old Cave Bear Discovered in Russia
The bear’s sharp teeth. A reindeer herder found it and handed it over to scientists.
The carcass of a cave bear that could be over 15,000 years old has been found in northern Russia.
The discovery was made on the New Siberian Islands north of eastern Siberia. The well-preserved remains are now to be examined in detail.
According to information from the newspaper “Siberian Times”, it is a species of cave bear that went extinct 15’000 years ago. This bear carcass could therefore be up to 39’000 years old.
The remains of the wild animal were reportedly discovered by a reindeer herder and are to be examined at the North-Eastern Federal University in Yakutsk.
The university confirmed that the animal carcass found on Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island most likely dates from the Karginsky interstadial. «The exact age of the bear is to be determined using the radiocarbon method», said biologist Maxim Cheprasov from the Mammoth Museum at the North-Eastern Federal University.
This find is of great significance for the entire world.
Lena Grigorieva, Head of the Molecular Palaeontology Laboratory
„This is the first find of its kind and it is unique – a complete bear carcass with soft tissue. It is fully preserved; even all the internal organs are present. The photo shows that even the bear’s nose is intact. Previously, only skulls and bones had been found», said the researcher.
First ever preserved grown up cave bear – even its nose is intact – unearthed on the Arctic island. Separately at least one preserved carcass of a cave bear cub found on the mainland of Yakutia, with scientists hopeful of obtaining its DNA https://t.co/GCVpvc0DSy pic.twitter.com/Z65E9ktJZd
— The Siberian Times (@siberian_times) September 12, 2020
The remains of the wild animal are currently still at the site where they were found. The university is now planning comprehensive investigations in cooperation with foreign colleagues.
Scientist Maxim Cheprasov: “To determine the exact age of the bear, we will use the radiocarbon method.” This radioactive dating method establishes the age of a find based on its carbon composition.
Both present-day and ancient brown bears carry between 0.9 and 2.4 percent cave bear DNA in their genome. Conversely, genetic material from brown bears can also be found in the cave bear, albeit to a lesser extent. The scientists conclude from this that cave bears and brown bears must have mated with one another before one species finally went extinct around 15’000 years ago.
The researchers identified five major DNA lineages scattered across Europe, all tracing back to a common ancestor who lived approximately 451,000 years ago.
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