Will mammoths be cloned?

Russian scientists have developed the most detailed picture ever of the insides of prehistoric animals. They made the discovery after studying a 37,000 year-old baby mammoth found immaculately preserved in the Yamalo-Nenets region in Russia. The scientists say it was crucial for the study of prehistoric life to pinpoint the exact location of the animal’s internal organs.

Some experts hope that the perfect condition in which the body of the mammoth was found could allow scientists to extricate intact DNA from his cells, and, as a result, clone the animal in future.

With the mammoth's trunk still intact, eyes in place and small tufts of fur still on its skin, it looks more like a museum fake than an actual specimen. The creature’s organs were also perfectly preserved, and its heart could be clearly seen with the help of computer scanning techniques.

The animal was immediately buried in a watery area or a bog after its death (see this post for more on bogs). It was located there in a frozen state for several thousand years until it reappeared to the world after a part of the river’s bank slipped off.

Below is a brief video on the find: