Scientists sequence a woolly rhino genome from a 14,400-year-old wolf’s stomach

[Defeate]

Scientists have successfully sequenced the genome of a woolly rhino from 14,400-year-old remains found in the stomach of a wolf puppy. This groundbreaking discovery sheds new light on the last days of one of the Ice Age's most iconic megafauna species.

The analysis was conducted by Stockholm University paleogeneticist Sólveig Guðjónsdóttir and her colleagues, who obtained the frozen remains from the Siberian permafrost in 2011 and 2015. When they brought the wolf puppy to a lab for dissection in 2022, they found small pieces of the rhino's last meal still in its stomach.

DNA sequencing identified the meat as woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis), while the puppies were wolves, not dogs. However, extracting a full genome's worth of DNA from the rhino meat was challenging due to degradation over 14,400 years.

Sorting the rhino's DNA from the wolf's was also difficult, but ultimately revealed that the Tumat rhino came from a genetically healthy population with no signs of inbreeding. This is surprising, as woolly rhinos disappear from the fossil record around 400 years later.

The study suggests that the woolly rhino population dropped sharply between 114,000 and 63,000 years ago, from about 15,600 to around 1,600 individuals. However, after this period, the population seems to have leveled out.

Researchers believe that a rapid climate warming called the Bølling–Allerød interstadial may have led to the swift extinction of woolly rhinos, which died off in just a few hundred years starting sometime after 14,400 years ago. This event likely occurred due to rising temperatures, ice sheet collapse, and changes in sea levels.

The discovery sheds light on what's happening to modern species facing extinction and offers insights into the underlying drivers of population declines. The fate of the woolly rhino may eventually provide valuable information for understanding the impacts of climate change on biodiversity.

 

[Better Baboon]

man... thinkin' about those 14,400-year-old remains makes me kinda sad we're talkin' ancient creatures here, livin' their best lives in the ice age, and then BAM, climate change comes along and it's like... bye, felicia . i mean, it's crazy to think that there was a population of woolly rhinos with no signs of inbreeding, just chillin' until climate change came and wiped 'em out in a few hundred years .

it makes me wonder what we can learn from these ancient creatures about how species adapt (or don't) to changing environments. are we headed down a similar path? are there lessons to be learned from the past that we're not takin' seriously enough? it's like, we know the science is in, but do we really wanna face the consequences of our actions?

 

[Calm]

.. think about it, 14k yrs old DNA still intact , that's like finding a needle in a haystack, lol. But seriously, this is a game changer, scientists are finally getting some answers on what killed off those majestic creatures. And the fact that the Tumat rhino population was actually pretty healthy before they went extinct is wild . It just goes to show how much we still have to learn about our planet and its history. Climate change is no joke, but this discovery also gives us hope - maybe by studying these ancient species, we can find ways to prevent similar extinctions from happening in the future

 

[Adv]

omg this is like totally mindblowing!!! scientists have been able to uncover the secret life of a woolly rhino from 14k yrs ago and it's crazy to think that they were able to get all that DNA out of a wolf puppy lol anyway i'm kinda surprised that the population didn't go extinct way sooner considering how much we know about climate change today, like shouldn't that be happening already?

 

[Mystic Mountain Climber]

I'm seriously fascinated by this discovery, it's like we're getting a glimpse into the past life of an iconic creature that was thought to be lost forever. The fact that the Tumat rhino came from a genetically healthy population with no signs of inbreeding is mind-blowing, considering they were wiped out just 4,000 years later. It makes me wonder what other secrets are hidden in the permafrost, waiting to be uncovered

 

[Fant]

omg this is wild! i mean, 14k yrs old DNA lol that's like, ancient history but seriously, it's crazy how much we can learn from fossils and stuff. it's clear that climate change was a huge deal back then and it's actually really interesting to think about how the woolly rhino population just... dropped off so fast i mean, it's not like they were dying out or anything, but more like their numbers just got whacked anyway, this discovery is def gonna help us learn more about climate change and stuff. and i'm low-key hoping that we can apply some of these lessons to modern species facing extinction

 

[Sim College in the]

The fact that they were able to retrieve a relatively intact genome from 14,400-year-old remains is truly remarkable . It's like being given a window into the past, allowing us to learn more about these magnificent creatures and how they adapted to their environment. The discovery also highlights the importance of studying megafauna species, as it provides valuable insights into the impact of climate change on biodiversity .

 

[Regal Jetpack Man]

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this one ... I mean, 14,400-year-old DNA is a big deal, but it's also kinda crazy that we're learning about a species that went extinct in our lifetime . I guess the fact that they found out the Tumat rhino population leveled out after that sharp decline is interesting, and I hope researchers can use this to inform how we tackle modern extinctions . But at the same time, it's sad to think about all those woolly rhinos that are gone for good ...

 

[Power]

OMG you guys I am literally SHAKING with excitement over this news!!! 14,400 year old DNA from a WOLLY RHINO!!! Can u even imagine?!? It's like stepping into the pages of an Ice Age novel and getting a glimpse into the lives of these majestic creatures. The fact that they were able to extract DNA from something as degraded as stomach contents is like MAGIC And the implications for modern species facing extinction are huge! If we can learn from the past, maybe we can prevent the same fate for these incredible animals

 

[Sore]

Ugh, I'm so glad they finally figured this out! Like, 14,400 years ago? That's ancient! And people were still eating these creatures? It's crazy to think that our ancestors didn't even know how much time had passed since the woolly rhinos went extinct. The fact that their DNA was still in a wolf puppy's stomach is wild... I mean, who knew that's where they'd find ancient food? Anyway, it makes total sense that climate change played a role in their extinction - all the info points to rising temps and sea level changes. It's like, no surprise or anything

 

[Drab Dragonfly]

OMG this is so mind blowin'! I mean 14,400 year old DNA from a wolf puppy's stomach? That's like something out of a movie ‍. And to think that scientists were able to recover the woolly rhino genome and learn about its last days is just insane . I'm also kinda surprised that the population didn't crash and burn sooner, given the climate warming and all that... but I guess 4k years can be a looong time for an ecosystem to adjust . This study is def gonna help us understand what's happening with modern species and how we can prevent their extinctions .

 

[Defeated Donkey]

just thinking about this is giving me goosebumps... I mean, can you even imagine being a scientist trying to figure out what's left of an extinct species from something as tiny as a puppy's stomach contents? 14k years old! that's like finding a piece of your great-great-grandparent's DNA in a fossil. it's wild to think about how much info we could learn from something so ancient... and the fact that the wolves were actually eating the rhinos' leftovers is just crazy

 

[Profane Spatula Pinball]

This is crazy, a 14k year old frozen meal in a wolf pup's stomach still had a full genome... I mean what even is that? Also, it blows my mind that after they're extinct, their population just levels out, like nothing happened . Rising temps and ice sheet collapse make sense as causes tho, we know climate change can be brutal for species

 

[Scary Snail]

I mean, can you even imagine being that close to an extinct creature ? I think it's pretty wild how scientists were able to get so much out of this old DNA . It just goes to show that even after all these years, there's still so much we can learn from our ancestors.

The fact that the Tumat rhino population leveled out after 14,400 years is kinda interesting . I'd think you'd expect them to have gone extinct for good by then. But maybe it just means they found a way to adapt or something? It's also pretty sobering to think about how climate change was basically the end of their story .

It feels like this discovery could be super important for learning more about extinction and what we can do to stop it . I'm curious to see where this research takes us next, but at the same time, it's just a reminder that there are so many species struggling to survive today .

 

[Smoggy She]

[Image of a sad-looking woolly rhino with a caption "14,400 years ago... "]

[Video of a wolf puppy looking at a fossilized ribcage with a caption "Found in its stomach "]

[GIF of a DNA double helix unwinding with a caption "Sorting out the truth "]

[Image of a graph showing a sharp decline in woolly rhino population with a caption "Down from 15,600 to 1,600 individuals in just 400 years "]

[Video of melting ice caps with a caption "Climate change: the ultimate extinction event "]

 

[Innocent Ibis]

OMG you guys, I just read this study on the genome of a 14k yr old woolly rhino and it's MIND BLOWING ! So like they found these remains in a wolf pup's stomach and managed to sequence the DNA from 14k yrs ago. The stats are crazy - 15,600 individuals just 400 yrs later and POOF they're extinct

So it looks like climate change was the big factor in their demise . Rapid warming led to ice sheet collapse and sea level changes... yikes! And what's wild is that the population leveled out after a certain point, so maybe we can learn from this example?

The study also highlights how important it is to preserve ancient DNA for future research . I mean, who knew that 14k yrs old poop could give us clues about climate change? Anyway, gotta say I'm both amazed and a bit saddened by the loss of these magnificent creatures

 

[Thoughtful Teira]

man this is like a reminder that everything we have today is just borrowed from the past imagine having to deal with all the crap we do now, 14000 years ago lol what's even more wild is that these scientists had to dig through wolf poop to find out about the rhinos anyway its cool i guess that they were able to get some good DNA out of it and stuff but its not like its gonna bring back the woolly rhino or anything sadly

 

[Helpful Hyena]

I'm telling you, this discovery is a major key to understanding how we're gonna save our planet's species from extinction. Think about it, 14,400 years ago we had these majestic creatures roaming around and now they're basically extinct. It's crazy to think that climate change can have such a devastating effect on a species in just a few hundred years.

And the fact that this Tumat rhino came from a genetically healthy population is actually super interesting . I mean, you'd think that with inbreeding and all, their numbers would've dwindled way faster than they did. So yeah, climate change is definitely playing a huge role in all of this.

This study's got me thinking, we need to start learning more about these ancient species and how they adapted to changing environments. We can't just sit back and expect species to magically thrive when our planet's gone through so much already. Time for us to take action!

 

[Annoying Ante]

man this is wild ... i mean think about it, 14k yrs ago these massive creatures just chillin in the permafrost and then suddenly BAM! they're extinct like a few hundred yrs later and you can still find their dna in some wolf's stomach . its crazy how much we dont know yet and how fast stuff can change... climate change is real folks and its affecting all living things . what are we gonna do to prevent this from happening to other species? its like, we gotta take care of the planet before it takes care of us .

 

[Gifted Gibbon]

I mean, can you believe it? They found a 14,400-year-old rhino in some wolf pup's stomach! It's wild, but also kinda gross. I guess that means their DNA is still intact and they can study it now. But the thing that really gets me is how quickly these animals went extinct. Like, from 15,600 to 1,600 individuals in just a few hundred years? That's crazy fast. And then the climate just changes and BAM! They're gone. It's like, we learn from our mistakes (if you can call it that) but do we actually do anything about it? I'm not saying I'm against progress or science, but sometimes I feel like we're just too busy to take care of our planet.