Remarkably Well-Preserved Baby Mammoth Remains Unveiled by Scientists

Scientists have uncovered the preserved remains of a juvenile mammoth, believed to be over 50,000 years old, after it was thawed from permafrost in Russia. The discovery, made in the Batagaika crater in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia), marks another extraordinary find as climate change causes the region’s permafrost to melt.

The mammoth’s carcass, weighing over 110kg (240lbs), was carefully brought to the surface on an improvised stretcher, according to Maxim Cherpasov, head of the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Laboratory in Yakutsk. Cherpasov estimates that the mammoth was likely just over a year old at the time of its death, though further testing will provide more precise information.

One of the most remarkable aspects of the find is the preservation of the mammoth’s head and trunk. Typically, the thawing process causes these parts, especially the trunk, to be consumed by predators or scavenging birds. However, this specimen’s head is unusually well-preserved, even though the forelimbs have been eaten by animals.

This discovery adds to a series of remarkable paleontological finds in Russia’s permafrost. In the same region, scientists recently uncovered the remains of a 32,000-year-old sabre-toothed cat cub and a 44,000-year-old wolf carcass earlier this year, offering unprecedented insights into ancient species.