Paleoparasitological studies of the woolly mammoth (Mammutus primigenus (Blumenbach, 1799))

Mammoth fauna found in the permafrost in Yakutia are usually well-preserved, with up to 90% of unique discoveries, including those with soft tissues and fossil animals with intact biological fluids. Despite the exceptional preservationconditions in the deep permafrost, the remains of woolly mammoth have not been used in paleoparasitological research. This article introduces the initial findings of a paleoparasitological investigation conducted on thawed samples obtained from a woolly mammoth. The research material consisted of the gastrointestinal contents of a woolly mammoth found in the Bulunsky district on the Bykovsky Peninsula in 2022. The mammoth’s remains were discovered in permafrost and were consistently frozen until sampling, maintaining their shape well. Traditional helminthological methods, such as native smear and the Fulleborn method, were used. For the first time, eggs and larvae of helminths from the Nematoda class, including the Ascaris eggs from the Ascaridata suborder, family Ascarididae Baird, 1853 were identified in frozen-thawed samples of the woolly mammoth. A total of 13 eggs were found, showcasing excellent preservation that allowed for visualization of eggs at various developmental stages and measurement of eggshell size and thickness. The diameter of the Ascaris eggs from the woolly mammoth (Mammutus primigenus (Blumenbach, 1799)) was 73.25 ± 1.47 microns, with a shell thickness of 4.10 ± 0.20 microns. Additionally, four varieties of whole larvae and larvae fragments of the Nemathelminthes type within the Nematoda class were identified for the first time. These discoveries contribute to our knowledge of ancient fossil animals parasites and require further exploration.

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