Seven Mummified Cheetahs Found in Cave, Some Thousands of Years Old
"Evidence of Diverse Cheetah Populations in Arabia"
A cheetah, believed to have gone extinct in the Arabian Peninsula several decades ago, was discovered in a naturally mummified state in a cave in northeastern Saudi Arabia.
On January 16, Yonhap News reported these findings based on research led by Dr. Ahmad Al-Boug and his team at the National Center for Wildlife in Saudi Arabia, published in the scientific journal Communications Earth & Environment on the same day.
A cheetah head naturally mummified hundreds to thousands of years ago, discovered in a cave in northeastern Saudi Arabia and preserved in a laboratory. Science journal Communications Earth & Environment
The research team analyzed seven naturally mummified cheetahs and skeletal remains of 54 cheetahs, as well as the remains of animals presumed to be their prey, all discovered in five caves near the northeastern Saudi city of Arar between 2022 and 2023. They collected samples from two mummified cheetahs and five skeletal remains and conducted radiocarbon (C14) dating, using 1950 as the reference point. The oldest skeletal remains dated to 4,223±40 years ago, while the two mummified cheetahs dated to 1,871±45 years ago and 127±40 years ago, respectively.
Although there are five subspecies of cheetah, only the Asiatic cheetah is known to have lived in Saudi Arabia. The research team explained that these results indicate cheetahs existed in Arabia not only in prehistoric times but also in relatively recent historical periods. This means that cheetahs were not animals that disappeared long ago, but rather a species that adapted to the local environment until comparatively recent times. Furthermore, ancient DNA extraction and whole-genome analysis revealed that the complete genome sequence of a cheetah from 130 years ago was genetically closest to the Asiatic cheetah, while the specimens from 1,870 and 4,000 years ago were most similar to the Northwest African cheetah.
Mummified cheetah discovered in a cave in northeastern Saudi Arabia. Science journal "Communications Earth & Environment"
The research team stated that this discovery shows at least two subspecies-the Asiatic cheetah and the Northwest African cheetah-inhabited the Arabian Peninsula before the regional extinction of cheetahs, opening up new possibilities for reintroducing cheetahs to the region.
Cheetahs once ranged across most of Africa, West Asia, and South Asia, but today they remain in only 9% of their historical range. In Asia, their range has declined by 98%, and they are believed to have gone extinct in the Arabian Peninsula in the 1970s. The researchers noted that with only about ten wild Asiatic cheetahs known to survive in Iran, there has been ongoing debate about the feasibility of reintroducing cheetahs to the Arabian Peninsula. They emphasized, "Expanding the available genetic pool increases the likelihood of successful rewilding efforts for endangered animals," and added, "This study demonstrates the potential to help reestablish cheetahs in Saudi Arabia."
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