Researchers from Bournemouth University have helped identify a rich community of Arctic animals that lived in Northern Norway 75,000 years ago.
The remains of 46 species, including polar bear, walrus, bowhead whale, Atlantic cod and collared lemming, were discovered in a cave near the coast. It’s the oldest evidence of a complete animal ecosystem found in the European Arctic.
Scientists say the animals thrived during a warmer part of the ice age, but were later wiped out when cold conditions returned. The findings, published in *Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences*, suggest these cold-adapted species were unable to migrate when the environment changed.
Dr Sam Walker from Bournemouth University said the bones offer a rare glimpse into a vanished Arctic world and show how vulnerable these animals were to climate shifts.
The research took place in Arne Qvamgrotta, a cave revealed during mining works in the 1990s but only recently explored in full. Excavations in 2021 and 2022 unearthed thousands of preserved bone fragments from both marine and land animals.
