Woolly rhinos went extinct due to climate change 14,000 years ago

20 Aug 2020

Woolly rhinos went extinct due to climate change 14,000 years ago

Woolly rhinos went extinct due to climate change 14,000 years agoDid you know that there used to be woolly rhinos 14,000 years ago? They were huge, with thick and long hair. They also had horns and a huge hump. They roamed in the northern parts of Europe and Asia.

Earlier, scientists believed that they could have been hunted by humans into extinction. However, a new study says that the woolly rhino likely went extinct due to climate change.

For this study, scientists studied ancient DNA from woolly rhinos found in north-east Siberia. Siberia is located in Russia.

Siberia is, even now, a very cold place. It was even colder when the woolly rhino lived thousands of years ago. So, the animal, like other animals in the region, had warm fur to help it survive the extreme cold.

However, there was a sudden but brief period of warming temperatures during the time the woolly rhino disappeared. This event, called the Bølling-Allerød interstadial, happened between 12,890 and 14,690 years ago.

The period saw an extremely fast rise in temperature, which changed the environment and nature. This would have badly affected the woolly rhino. As the area got much warmer, it was unable to cope and died out.

So, while human hunting could have been one reason, the main reason for their disappearance was climate change.

This ancient finding shows us how rapid climate warming can badly affect nature and wildlife. This can easily be a lesson for us in the present day and age as we are also fighting climate change.

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Did you know that there used to be woolly rhinos 14,000 years ago? They were huge, with thick and long hair. They also had horns […]

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