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Sunday, 06 January 2008 |
Frozen Mammoth May Explain Extinction and Climate Change
Frozen in nearly the same state in which it died some 37,500 years ago, a Siberian baby mammoth undergoing tests in Japan could explain why the beasts became extinct - and shed light on climate change, scientists said on its arrival. Specialists say ‘Lyuba’, the name given to the baby-mammoth, is extremely precious since it is the first one ever found intact and undamaged. The 6-month-old gray and brown calf, unearthed in May by a reindeer herder in northern Siberia's remote Yamal-Nenets region, is virtually intact and even has some fur, though the tail and an ear of the animal were bitten off.
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A refrigerating chamber with the well-preserved 50 kilogram body of the baby mammoth has been transferred from the Narita international airport to Jikei University in Komae, a suburb of Tokyo. Scientists assume that Lyuba died at the aged of 6 months and its body lay in permafrost for about 37 thousand years.
"This is what we've all been waiting for — the chance to explain everything about the mammoth," said Naoki Suzuki of the Jikei University School of Medicine, who is leading the first phase of an international study of the carcass's structure. Our findings will be a big step toward resolving the mystery of their extinction," Suzuki told a press conference in Tokyo.
 The 4-foot gray-and-brown mammoth underwent a computed tomography scan that produced 3-D pictures with an almost surgical view, Suzuki said. Scientists hope to analyze the 3-D data to get a better picture of the mammoth's internal organs and structure, as well as for clues on the baby's diet and why it died, Sergey Grishin, director of the Shemanovsky Yamal-Nenets Museum said in an interview. They will also analyze tiny air samples left in Lyuba's lungs for clues to the earth's atmosphere during the last Ice Age.
Akito Arima, head of the Science Museum in Tokyo where Lyuba is on display until late February, said global warming may be a reason the mammoth was discovered now, but he gave no details. Permafrost — earth that remains frozen year-round — lies under much of Siberia but scientists fear that global warming will cause it to melt and could accelerate climate change by releasing large amounts of warming carbon dioxide gases into the atmosphere.
Mammoths, large mammals known for their furry coats, long tusks and massive bulk, are said to have appeared some 4.8 million years ago. While most mammoths died out approximately 12,000 years ago, a dwarf version - woolly mammoth - survived on Russia's Wrangel Island, located in the Arctic Ocean, up until 1700 BC. The best-preserved mammoth remains are found all across Siberia.
The frozen mammoth has already triggered global interest. Scientists from Japan, the United States, Canada, Russia and other European countries are scheduled to take part in the research. Preliminary results were expected in October.
"Lyuba's discovery is an historic event," said Bernard Buigues, vice-president of the Geneva-based International Mammoth Committee. "It could tell us why this species didn't survive and shed light on the fate of human beings."
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