Survey of the Yukagir Mammoth Discovery Site (September)
September 22, 2004
1. Survey itinerary
| September 4 | Travel from Yakutsk to Tiksi helicopter base |
| September 5 | Travel to the site by charter helicopter and commence survey |
| September 6-7 | Survey |
| September 8 | Complete survey and return to Tiksi |
| September 9 | Return to Yakutsk |
| September 10 | Collate survey notes and organize specimens at Yakutsk |
2. Survey Team
The survey team consisted of approximately 15 menbers. Most were members of the Scientific Council for Research on the Yukagir Mammoth, which is sponsored by the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Russian Federation, and chaired by G. V. Tolstych, Minister of Science and Professional Education, Republic of Sakha.
Other members of the survey team included A. Tikhonov (Russia), vice chairman of the Scientific Council for Research on the Yukagir Mammoth, P. A. Lazarev (Sakha), G. G. Boyeskorov (Sakha), Yu. K. Burlakov (Russia), B. Buigues (France), D. Mol (Holland), and D. Fisher (United States). There were three Japanese team members, including Munenori Yamada, Director-General to the Japan Association for the 2005 World Exposition.
3. Activities at the Site
The main purpose of the survey was to search for additional remains near the location where the head and front legs were discovered. The scope of the survey was expanded to include more of the unexplored area around the site, and the excavation was also deepened.
The site was free of snow and ice, and the ground surface was fully exposed. The excavation and search were conducted with extreme care and caution, using shovels and trowels for the surface layer and picks and other tools for the permafrost.
A small dam was built to provide access to the submerged portion of the site, so that the riverbed could be excavated and explored.
Ultimately the surface layer was removed to allow a search for bones and other materials. A fresh cross-section was used to obverse ground strata in the area.
In addition to these activities, specimens were gathered from the location in which the head was discovered and the surrounding area for use in soil and pollen analyses.
4. Discoveries
The following skeletal fragments and other items were discovered during the latest survey.
- Bones: 10 thoracic vertebrae, 8 ribs (7 right, 1 left), upper right carpal bone
- Large quantities of hair
- Partial skin (discovered in a mummified state)
- Tissue believed to be part of the intestinal wall (further research required to identify the location), together with intestinal contents
The specimens collected at the site were transported to Yakutsk and stored at the Mammoth Museum
5. Conclusions from Survey
Despite excavations in the submerged area of the site, only bones from the front half of the body were discovered. The survey site is a cliff formed through erosion by the river. The consensus view of experts on the International Scientific Council for Research on the Yukagir Mammoth is that the rear half of the body was probably swept away and is unlikely to be discovered. It was therefore decided to conclude excavation work relating to the Yukagir Mammoth.
The full list of remains discovered, including items discovered previously, is as follows.
- Head (with 2 tusks)
- All of the cervical vertebrae and most of the thoracic vertebrae
- Left front leg (with soft tissue below the knee and bone above)
- Part of the right foreleg
- Part of the ribs (especially those forming the right side of the chest)
- Part of the skin (discovered in a mummified state)
- Part of the intestinal wall (further research required to identify the location), together with intestinal contents
- Hair
The remains discovered correspond to the front half of body. Soft tissue remained only on those parts that were buried deep in the cliff (away from the surface and the lake).
6. Policy on Future Research
The latest survey marks the completion of survey work at the Yukagir Mammoth site, and future research will be carried out in laboratories. The plan calls for research on the following topics.
- Non-destructive three-dimensional measurement of the external and internal morphology of the Yukagir Mammoth
- Investigation of the life history of the Yukagir Mammoth
- Recreation of the vegetation and other aspects of the paleo-environment when the mammoth was alive
- Research into the mammoth fossilization process
- DNA-based genealogical and histological research
7. Thoughts on the Exhibit
It is planned to exhibit the recovered parts of the Yukagir Mammoth, including the head, left front leg and bones, in a refrigerated display area adjacent to the Global House. The display zone in the Global House will also contain mammoth-related exhibits. In addition to general research findings about mammoths and the global environment in their era, there will also be a model of the entire Yukagir Mammoth, and displays showing survey and excavation activities, as well as a video presentation in which computer graphics and other techniques will be used to show the latest research findings.
EXPO 2005 Mammoth Academic Research and Scientific Committee
The Japan Association for the 2005 World Exposition has decided to expand and merge the EXPO 2005 Mammoth Excavation and Exhibition Scientific Research Committee (Chairman, Naoki Suzuki) and the EXPO 2005 Mammoth Excavation and Exhibition Implementation Committee (Chairman, Akio Etori) to create the EXPO 2005 Mammoth Academic Research and Exhibition Committee. The preparatory meeting for the new committee was held on September 22.
Candidates for Committee Membership
Chairman
Takashi Hamada, Chairman of the Japan Science Society (Emeritus Professor, the University of Tokyo, Emeritus Professor, University of the Air)
Vice Chairman
Naoki Suzuki, Professor, Institute for High Dimensional Medical Imaging, Tokyo Jikei University School of Medicine
Akio Etori, Professor, Edogawa University
Members
| Hideki Endo | Curator, Department of Zoology, the National Science Museum |
| Tomowo Ozawa | Professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Science, Nagoya University |
| Haruo Saegusa | Assistant Professor, Institute of Natural and Environmental Science, Himeji Institute of Technology (Research Scientist, Museum of Nature and Human Activities) |
| Toshio Nakamura | Professor, Nagoya University Center for Chronological Research |
| Masami Fukuda | Professor, Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University |
| Kazuo Watanabe | Professor, Gene Research Center, University of Tsukuba |
Timeline
| July 17, 2003 | EXPO 2005 Mammoth Excavation and Exhibition Organizing Committee established, announcement of plan to send survey team to Russia |
| January 16, 2004 | Memorandum of understanding signed with the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in the Russian Federation, concerning the exhibition of the Yukagir Mammoth, which was discovered in the Ust-Yansky District of Sakha, at EXPO 2005 as part of a joint Japanese-Russian project |
| January 17, 2004 | Joint press conference attended by Alexander Akimov, vice president of the Sakha Republic |
| February 16-25, 2004 | Excavation trials conducted in Hokkaido (at the Chubetsu Dam Construction Office, Higashikawa-cho, Kamikawa-gun) |
| May 22, 2004 | Yukagir Mammoth Scientific Committee (chairman: G. V. Tolstych, Minister of Science and Professional Education, Republic of Sakha, vice chairman, Naoki Suzuki, Professor, Tokyo Jikei University School of Medicine) established by order of the President of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) |
| May 27, 2004 | Visit to Japan by President Shtyrov of the Sakha Republic Agreement reached concerning exhibition of Yukagir Mammoth at EXPO 2005 as a joint project by the Russian Federation, the Sakha Republic, and the Japan Association for the 2005 World ExpositionPhotographs of head of Yukagir Mammoth displayed at press conference |
| June 8-15, 2004 | Survey of Yukagir Mammoth discovery site (June) |
| June 21, 2004 | Publication of summary of results of June survey of Yukagir Mammoth discovery sitePhotographs of previously discovered left front leg published |
| September 4-10, 2004 | Survey of Yukagir Mammoth discovery site (September) |
| September 22, 2004 | Publication of summary of results of September survey of Yukagir Mammoth discovery site |
For further information:
Public Relations and Advertising Group
Japan Association for the 2005 World Exposition, Aichi, Japan
Tokyo Office: KAWAMOTO or OKAMOTO
Tel. +81-3-5521-1620
