Scientists Want To Clone Tiny Lion Cubs From The Ice Age

Ice age lions could roam the Earth again, if scientists get their way

Experts are hoping to clone the big cats from two almost intact prehistoric cubs that were discovered last year.

According to Dr Albert Protopopov, the cubs were found in their icy grave ‘complete with all their body parts: fur, ears, soft tissue, and even whiskers'.

They’re so tiny

Now Hwang Woo-suk, a South Korean cloning expert, is travelling to Yakutsk in Russia to obtain samples from one of the cubs, the Siberian Times reported.

Hwang has form when it comes to recreating the ice age he is currently working on a groundbreaking project to bring the extinct woolly mammoth back to life.

Hwang Woo-suk and researchers studying the cubs

Unveiling the prehistoric kittens for the first time last year, Dr Protopopov said: ‘Compared to modern lion cubs, we think these two were very small maybe a week or two old.

‘The eyes were not quite open, they have baby teeth and not all had appeared.'

A replica of an Ice Age cave lion

He added that they may have died after their mum hid them in a cave to protect them from predators.

‘Then the landslide covered [the cave] and they remained surrounded by permafrost. The air intake was also blocked, and this helped their preservation.'

This summer, researchers are planning to go back to the cave and look for more cubs or even the mother.