#Remains of Ice Age cave bear found perfectly preserved in Russia

Reindeer herders in the Russian Arctic recently made a “grizzly” discovery — the perfectly preserved carcass of an Ice Age cave bear, researchers announced Monday.

Melting permafrost on the Lyakhovsky Islands revealed the find “of great importance for the whole world,” said scientists from the North-Eastern Federal University in Yakutsk.

“This is the first and only find of its kind — a whole bear carcass with soft tissues,” said researcher Lena Grigorieva in a statement.

The ancient bear, estimated to be to be between 22,000 and 39,500 years old, was found in mint condition, with even his nose and teeth intact.

“It is completely preserved, with all internal organs in place,” said Grigorieva. “This find is of great importance for the whole world.”

Previously, scientists only had been able to uncover the bones of cave bears that became extinct 15,000 years ago.

Maxim Cheprasov, a senior researcher from the Mammoth Museum laboratory in Yakutsk, said in the statement: “It is necessary to carry out radiocarbon analysis to determine the precise age of the bear.”

Scientists have yet to be able to visit the remote site of the find, located on the New Siberian Islands archipelago that lies between the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea.

As the permafrost melts across vast areas in Russia’s region of Siberia, there have been several major discoveries in recent years including of mammoths, woolly rhinos, Ice Age foal, several puppies and Cave Lion cubs.

With Post wires