Found almost intact cave bear from Pleistocene

Remains of a prehistoric cave bear have been found in the Russian Arctic. It is the first time that remains of an adult with the carcass and tissue still intact have been found.

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All organs and even the nose are in place, says scientist Lena Grigorieva, of Northeastern Federal University in Yakutsk. This university is very much concerned with woolly mammoths and rhinoceroses.

The researcher calls the find of world importance. The specimen is estimated to be between 22,000 and 39,000 years old. Researchers hope to obtain DNA.

The Ursus spelaeus was a prehistoric large bear species from the Pleistocene, a period between 2.5 million years and 12,000 years ago. The cave bears weighed about three times as much as today’s European brown bear and could reach 3.5 meters on their hind legs.

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