New Zealand Science Teacher

Liquid blood found in mammoth

04/06/2013

Although woolly mammoths are thought to have died out 10,000 years ago, their revival could be made possible, thanks to a discovery on a remote Arctic island.

Russian scientists recently found a mammoth carcass on Maliy Lyakhovsky Island in the Novosibirsk archipelago in the East Siberian Sea.

Even though the temperature at the time of excavation was -7 to -10 degrees Celsius, the researchers found liquid blood inside the carcass.

The lower part of the mammoth's body was completely buried in the ice and the blood was found in pockets of ice underneath the animal's belly.

It is this blood that has scientists so excited: mammoth remains with well-preserved blood are rare and have possibilities for DNA cloning.

The scientists collected the mammoth blood in tubes and added a preservative agent. It was then sent to Yakutsk for lab testing to check for potential infections.

In the past, mammoth hair has been used to decipher its genetic code but living cells would be needed for further DNA work.