What for decades was considered a sensational Ice Age discovery has now turned out to be a mistake. Bone remains that researchers had previously attributed to young woolly mammoths actually come from whales. Only through the use of modern DNA sequencing was a definitive identification possible. As a result, the supposed mammoth finds have now been assigned a completely different origin.
The remains were discovered in Arctic regions, areas where numerous mammoth finds have already been made. Due to their size and shape, the bones fit well with the assumption that they belonged to juvenile specimens of the extinct proboscideans. However, a clear identification was not possible for a long time because the bones were heavily fragmented and weathered.
Only modern genetic analyses brought clarity. The extracted DNA showed unmistakably that the bones belong to marine mammals, more specifically to whales. Researchers explain how these remains could have ended up in areas that are now in some cases far from the sea by pointing to the dramatic environmental changes of past millennia. Ocean currents, glacial movements, and tectonic processes may have transported the bones to their present locations.
Experts emphasize that DNA analyses will play an even greater role in archaeology and paleontology in the future. They enable more precise identifications and help to reconstruct the living environments of past eras more accurately. The case of the supposed mammoth remains vividly demonstrates how modern science can reassess old mysteries.
For science, the correction is not a setback but a step forward. “Such re-evaluations help us understand the past more precisely,” researchers emphasize. The surprising discovery shows that even well-studied chapters of Earth’s history can be completely rewritten through new methods.
Rosamaria Kubny, PolarJournal