Frozen mammoth may shed light on climate change

A Siberian mammoth undergoing tests in Japan could finally explain why the beasts were driven to extinction – and shed light on the history of global climate change, scientists said today.

The calf, unearthed in May by a reindeer herder in northern Siberia’s remote Yamal-Nenets autonomous region, is virtually intact and even has some fur, although its tail and ear were apparently bitten off.

The animal is deep-frozen in more or less the state it died in some 37,500 years ago.

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 are expected in October.