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The mummified cub is so well preserved that he has his head, tail, paws, skin and hair intact.
Credit: Government of Yukon
While they were looking for gold in the western Yukon Territory, the miners found another type of rare treasure: the mummies of a caribou and a wolf pup. in ice age.
Frozen in the ground for more than 50,000 years, the creatures were unveiled last week at the Cultural Center of the Trk # ondëk Hwëch & # 39; in, Dawson.
"We are so used to working with the bones, so to have skin and hair-like animals, it really gives life to the old world," said Grant Zazula, Yukon government paleontologist.
The Yukon is now covered with spruce forests, but during the ice age, the region was a dry, dusty tundra. A variety of large mammals roamed the frozen meadows, including saber-toothed cats, woolly mammoths, and short-faced bears. [Skin and Bones: Inside Baby Mammoths]
There are several gold mining operations near Dawson City, and it is common for miners to find the fossilized bones of dead animals for a long time when they dig through layers of frozen mud all the time.
In June 2016, a miner began to discover caribou and reported it to paleontologists. Scientists came to the site and recovered the torso, head and both mummified anterior limbs. A month later, the surprisingly well-preserved cub was found at another nearby mine. Both animals have intact skin, muscles and hair.
The mummified caribou was found in a bed of volcanic ash dating back about 80,000 years ago.
Credit: Government of Yukon
"The Cub looks exactly like a little taxidermy puppy," said Zazula. "He has a small tail, hair, paws, eyelids and lips – it's spectacular." [See Photos of a Perfectly Preserved Ice-Age Foal]
Pieces of skin were torn from each animal and tested for radiocarbon to reveal their age. Both proved to be at least 50,000 years old, limit for radiocarbon analysis. However, caribou were found near a layer of ash from an 80,000-year-old volcanic eruption, which is a better indication of its actual age.
"This makes it probably one of the oldest mammal tissues in the world," Zazula said.
Zazula said that further animal research is underway. The basics of creatures could be restored from analyzes of elements such as carbon and nitrogen preserved in hair and bones. The ancient DNA could reveal the relationship between the animals of the Ice Age and modern herds of caribou and gray wolves in Canada.
Although the wolf and the caribou survived in the modern world, they were not very numerous during the ice age. "Their bones are actually quite rare compared to other big ones [ice-age]animals, "Zazulasaid.
And for the Tr? Ondëk Hwëch & # 39; in people, the wolf and the caribou have an interdependent importance.
"The caribou has been feeding and dressing our people for thousands of years," said Truce Chief Hoew & In, Roberta Joseph, in a statement. "The wolf maintains balance in the natural world, keeping the caribou healthy, it was an incredible discovery, and it's a great opportunity to work together with the Yukon government and our community partners. "
Original article on Live Science.
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