Scientists Find Ancient DNA in Yukon Squirrel Faeces
Researchers recovered genetic material from extinct and living animals preserved in frozen squirrel faeces in Canada's Yukon territory. The samples include DNA from woolly mammoths and other Ice Age species.
yahoo.comScientists announced Tuesday the recovery of ancient DNA from frozen squirrel faeces collected in Canada's remote Yukon territory. The material contains genetic sequences from extinct animals including woolly mammoths as well as species that still exist today.
Researchers gathered the faeces from permafrost sites where cold temperatures preserved the biological material for thousands of years. Laboratory tests identified DNA fragments belonging to multiple animal species that lived during the Pleistocene epoch.
Further analysis of the samples is expected to yield additional details about animal populations that inhabited the region during earlier climate periods.
