Russia discovered thousands of years of rhino fossils

Russian scientists have unearthed the ancient Merck rhinoceros fossil that lived a few million years ago in the Ural mountains.

This is considered an unexpected discovery, overshadowing the excavation in 2012, when scientists found the ancient porcupine tooth also in this area.

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The head of the paleontological research department at the Ural Flora Institute, Pavel Kosintsev said that if the detection of mammoth fossils in the permafrost becomes common, the discovery of the fossil rhinoceros Merck is a surprise. especially in Ural.

Usually, this animal fossil is found in southern Western Europe, where climate is more suitable for rhino living. However, during warmer months, they migrated to the east and to southern Siberia, as evidenced by the fact that sometimes their bones were found here, but most were found on the banks of the river, beyond the burial place. Its initial storage, so it is difficult to obtain biological data for research.

According to Kosintsev, the approximate age of the fossil has just been discovered about 120,000 years, which shows that Ural's climate was warmer today. The discovery of the Merck rhinoceros fossil has created an opportunity to recreate the last ice age environment, enabling scientists to study the rhino's biology more fully and find out why they become extinct.

Merck rhinoceros lives in a jungle environment, likes shrubs and tall grass. This is a solitary animal 1.5m high and more than 3m long. There is a theory that climate change and vegetation cause them to become extinct. It is thought that the rhinos eventually lived in modern Italian territory during the Paleolithic period. The fossil age of Merck rhino in Italy is about 200,000 years. However, the discovery of Russian scientists proves that this animal survived later, about 120,000 years ago.