"We can now see that the blood of the foal is almost identical to the modern domestic horse," said Semyon Grigoryev of the University of Yakutsk in the extreme east of Russia. At an autopsy, the researchers had taken blood and urine samples from a horse fossil that had already been dug out of Siberian permafrost last year.
You have previously discovered blood remains in a mammoth fossil. But the samples of the foal are much older and in the best condition. "This is extremely rare and really a sensation with such ancient finds," Grigoriev said. The team at the university now wants to further analyze the well-preserved organs and tissue, thus gaining new insights into the animal's former state of health and living conditions. The University of Yakutsk is internationally known for its mammoth research.
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Residents of the region had tracked the animal in 2018 in the approximately 100 meter deep Batagaika crater in the northeast Siberian taiga. Due to global warming, permafrost melts in parts of Russia, releasing well-preserved fossils, especially mammoths.
Hair, mane, tail - all received
The experts estimate that the 98-centimeter-sized foal is 30,000 to 40,000 years old. At the time of death it was about two weeks old and probably drowned in the mud. The permafrost preserved the foal perfectly. Hair, mane, skin, hooves and tail are still preserved.
The scientists explained that there are already attempts to remove cells from the foal that could be suitable for cloning. Together with colleagues from South Korea, they are working on the joint project. Even at an extinct mammoth found in Eastern Siberia in 2013, the clone researchers hoped for such experiments on the basis of the tissue found.