MOSCOW (AP) — The 50,000-year-old remains of a baby mammoth uncovered by melting permafrost have been unveiled to the public by researchers in Russia's Siberia region who call it the best-preserved mammoth body ever found.
Nicknamed Yana, the female mammoth weighs more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) and is 120 centimeters (47 inches) tall.
Scientists believe that Yana was 1 year old when she died. Her remains are one of seven mammoth carcasses recovered worldwide.
Yana was found among the melting permafrost at the Batagaika crater in the far-eastern Russian area of Yakutia. Known as the “gateway to the underworld," the crater is 1 kilometer deep and has previously revealed the remains of other ancient animals including bison, horses and .
As permafrost melts, affected by , more and more parts of prehistoric animals are being discovered.
Yana will be studied by scientists at Russia's North-Eastern Federal University, which has a dedicated mammoth research center and museum.
The university described the find as “exceptional†and said it would give researchers new information about how mammoths lived and adapted to their surroundings.
