It was called 'impossible': Mummies show mice survived in Mars-like conditions

Mummified mice discovered at the summit of the Atacama Desert show that mammals can live in a Mars-like, inhospitable environment.

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It was called 'impossible': Mummies show mice survived in Mars-like conditions

Researchers climbing to the summit of the Andes Mountains have found mummified mice.

According to Independent Türkçe, the Atacama Desert in the Andes Mountains of northern Chile and northwestern Argentina is compared to Mars due to its arid, windy volcanic peaks and harsh conditions.

'LIFE IS NOT POSSIBLE AT 6,000 METERS'

Experts say that life is absolutely impossible at 6,000 meters above sea level. However, according to a new study published in Current Biology, mice have shattered this understanding.

Jay Storz, one of the authors of the study, said, "Well-trained mountaineers can handle these extreme living conditions at high altitudes during a one-day summit climb," and added:

''But the fact that mice are living at this altitude shows that we have underestimated the physiological thresholds of small mammals.''

Storz and his team found the first mouse mummy by chance on the edge of a rock pile at the summit of Salin Volcano. Storz, who was looking around the rocks with the friend he climbed the summit with, reported that they found seven more mummies on the same peak.

The team, which later expanded their research to all the peaks of the Andes, searched a total of 21 volcanoes, 18 of which are over 6,000 meters.

SOME ARE 350 YEARS OLD

Scientists found 13 mummified mice on the summits of volcanoes higher than 6,000 meters.

In some places, numerous mouse skeletons were also seen alongside the mummies.

Analyses conducted using the radiocarbon dating method revealed that the mummies found on the summits of two volcanoes died no more than ten years ago. The mice found in the third region were estimated to be at most 350 years old.

THEY CLIMBED TO THE SUMMIT ON THEIR OWN, BUT HOW?

After genetic analysis of the mummies, it was understood that these mouse species were Phyllotis vaccarum (leaf-eared mice).

Storz stated, "The discovery of mummified mice on freezing and wind-eroded volcanic peaks is a big surprise."

On the other hand, it is not known why the mice climbed to such high altitudes.

The Incas, who lived in the region centuries ago, used to perform human and animal sacrifices on the peaks of the Andes.

However, according to the researchers, the ages of the mummified mice are not as old as the Incas. This weakens the possibility that they were left at the summit by the Incas.

Researchers are now investigating whether the mice have special physiological characteristics that allow them to survive in high-altitude, low-oxygen conditions.

News Source: 12punto