A gold miner in Yukon discovered a mangled ball of fur the size of a large grapefruit.
According to the CBC, X-rays revealed that the fur ball is a curled-up ice-age squirrel in "excellent condition."
The squirrel is thought to be 30,000 years old and died while hibernating.
Fully Preserved Mangled Ball Of Fur Found
David McNew/Getty Images
This brown, mangled ball of fur and claws was initially unidentifiable.
X-ray scans revealed, however, that this grapefruit-sized lump is a 30,000-year-old mummified ground squirrel from the ice age.
According to the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre, a gold miner discovered the mysterious fur ball in the Klondike gold fields near Dawson City, Yukon, in 2018.
"It's not quite recognizable until you see these little hands and claws, and you see a little tail, and then you see ears," said Grant Zazula, a paleontologist with the Yukon government.
He took it to veterinarian Jess Heath for further examination.
Heath used X-rays to determine that the frozen hairball was actually a young, curled-up Arctic ground squirrel.
It most likely died during its first year of hibernation.
The Yukon's Klondike gold fields have been covered in permafrost or frozen soil since the ice age. T
hat makes the area ideal for preserving creatures that died back then, complete with hair and nails.
Previously, gold miners discovered a mummified wolf pup and an immaculately preserved baby mammoth.
These types of discoveries are likely to become more common as global temperatures continue to rise as a result of human emissions of heat-trapping gases such as carbon dioxide and methane.
As a result, the permafrost is thawing, exposing everything from mummified creatures to viruses and anthrax deposits.
This squirrel was discovered in the Tr'ondk Hwch'in people's Traditional Territory.
The same species of Arctic ground squirrel lives in the Yukon today, though they resemble groundhogs rather than tree squirrels.
Arctic ground squirrels hibernate by building underground nests.
Many of these nests have survived the ice age and are common in the Yukon, but finding a preserved squirrel like this is unusual.
Some people get extremely excited when they discover a giant woolly mammoth leg, or large tusks or skulls.
"But, in my opinion, the Arctic ground squirrel fossils, nests, and now this mummified squirrel are the coolest things we have. They are without a doubt my favorites," according to Zazula.
The Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre announced on Facebook that the mummy and its X-ray would be on display shortly.
Arctic ground squirrels (Urocitellus parryii) are native to North America and Asia's Arctic and Subarctic regions, as per Alaska Wildlife Alliance.
In Alaska, they are also known as "parka" squirrels because their fur is used for clothing.
Males are larger than females, making these squirrels the largest of their kind in North America.
These social animals live in colonies to protect themselves from predators.
Males defend small home ranges against other males but are not territorial. From early October to mid-April, they hibernate.
Arctic ground squirrel colonies form in areas with well-drained soils and good views of the surrounding landscape.
Their colonies are made up of many burrows and a network of tunnels beneath the surface.
Well-drained soils are essential for preventing burrow flooding.
Arctic ground squirrels can hibernate for up to eight months in cold weather.
To avoid freezing, their body temperature drops and their blood loses water molecules during hibernation. This enables them to survive in subzero temperatures outside of their underground burrows, as per Sciencing.
