Girl, 14, finds world's most ancient LEMMING preserved in Siberian permafrost - Daily Mail

A schoolgirl has discovered a 41,000-year-old lemming preserved in the Siberian permafrost.

Angelina Sadovnikova, then 11, came across the mummified Pleistocene rodent - the most ancient in the world - under a river cliff.

The Ice Age herbivore was found with broken thigh bones, say scientists.

But it not known how it jumped or fell to its death in prehistoric times.

A schoolgirl has discovered a 41,000-year-old lemming 'substantially preserved' in the Siberian permafrost. It is believed the animal fell to its death after falling off a river cliff

Angelina Sadovnikova, 14, came across the mummified Pleistocene rodent - the most ancient in the world - under a river cliff three years ago

Angela is now 14 but the discovery and pictures are newly-revealed after detailed scientific investigation of the frozen lemming which is substantially preserved.

She was with her mother on the bank of the steep-sided Tirekhtyakh River, close to the Arctic Circle, when she came across the life-like lemming carcass.

Her find was passed to biology professors Nikita Solomonov and Vyacheslav Rozhnov who began research on the prehistoric rodent.

Radiocarbon dating revealed the Siberian brown lemming to be more than 41,300 years old and six and a half inches in length.

Experts say it is a myth that lemmings rush to jump off cliffs but the reason behind this furry creature's demise is not known

Radiocarbon dating revealed the Siberian brown lemming to be more than 41,300 years old and six and a half inches in length

Fur remains on the back, sides and abdomen, although not on the head.

X-ray analysis showed all the bones, including its skull, were well preserved although the animal's internal organs did not survive.

'The mummy's thighs were found to be broken,' reported The Siberian Times, citing research by the Russian Academy of Sciences which revealed the discovery.

Experts say it is a myth that lemmings rush to jump off cliffs but the reason behind this furry creature's demise is not known.

This animal lay buried in permafrost until it was seen by Angelina examine crevices made by woolly mammoth tusk hunters.

A new study reports: 'The finding of the Tirekhtyakh lemming is of great importance for understanding the evolution of this most important group of mammals in the Arctic communities.'

The permafrost-preserved remains of woolly mammoths and rhinos have been found along with cave lions and wolves along with other creatures.

2019-12-28 11:25:00Z
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