Scientists have recovered the complete genome of a woolly rhinoceros that lived more than 14,000 years ago—and they did it using tissue preserved inside the stomach of an Ice Age wolf.
The extraordinary discovery offers new insight into why these iconic animals vanished and suggests their extinction may have happened suddenly, rather than through a long, slow decline.
The research was carried out by scientists at the Center for Paleogenetics, a collaboration between Stockholm University and the Swedish Museum of Natural History. The study was published in Genome Biology and Evolution.
The story begins in northeastern Siberia, near the village of Tumat, where the frozen remains of an ancient wolf were discovered in permafrost.
When researchers examined the wolf, they found a small piece of preserved tissue in its stomach.
Radiocarbon dating showed the tissue was about 14,400 years old. DNA analysis later revealed that the wolf’s last meal had been a woolly rhinoceros—one of the youngest known individuals of the species ever found.
Recovering DNA from such a source is extremely difficult. Ancient DNA is usually broken into tiny fragments, and in this case, it was mixed with the wolf’s own genetic material.
Despite these challenges, the researchers succeeded in reconstructing the rhinoceros’ entire genome.
According to the team, this is the first time a full genome of an Ice Age animal has been sequenced from material found inside the stomach of another animal.
The genetic data allowed the scientists to ask an important question: were woolly rhinos already in trouble before they went extinct?
To find out, the team compared the newly sequenced genome with two other high-quality woolly rhino genomes from animals that lived around 18,000 and 49,000 years ago.
The results were surprising. The genomes showed no signs of increasing inbreeding, loss of genetic diversity, or buildup of harmful mutations over tens of thousands of years. In other words, woolly rhinos appeared to remain genetically healthy right up until the end.
This finding challenges the idea that the species slowly declined over time. Instead, it suggests the population collapsed relatively quickly. The researchers argue that rapid climate warming at the end of the last Ice Age likely played a major role. As temperatures rose, the cold, dry grasslands that woolly rhinos depended on began to disappear.
The genetic evidence also weakens the case for human hunting as the main cause of extinction. Woolly rhinos survived for thousands of years after humans first arrived in the region, indicating they were able to coexist for a long time.
By studying animals that lived just before extinction, scientists can better understand how species respond to sudden environmental change.
These lessons are increasingly relevant today, as many modern animals face rapid climate shifts.
In this case, an ancient wolf’s final meal has given researchers a rare and powerful glimpse into the last days of one of the Ice Age’s most famous giants.
Source: KSR.
