Mystery of 1,800-year-old mummified cheetahs discovered in cave

The mummified remains of cheetahs ranging from 130 years to more than 1,800 years old have been found in a cave – startling photos show the preserved creatures

In a mysterious discovery, the remains of cheetahs up to 1,800 years old were found in a cave.

The mummified remains range from 130 years to more than 1,800 years old and were unearthed by researchers in Saudi Arabia. Seven mummies, along with the bones of 54 other cheetahs, were excavated at a site near the city of Arar.

Photos of the preserved creatures show cloudy eyes and shriveled limbs, resembling dried out husks. Experts are currently baffled by the discovery, but some think it could have been a shelter where mothers gave birth to and raised their young.

Mummification prevents decay by preserving dead bodies. The mummies in Egypt are best known, but the process can also occur naturally in places such as glacial ice, desert sand and swamp silt.

“It’s something I’ve never seen before,” said Joan Madurell-Malapeira of the University of Florence in Italy, who was not involved in the discovery.

Scientists have discovered the rare mummified remains of other big cats, including a saber-toothed cat cub in Russia.

It is unusual for large mammals to be preserved to this extent. In addition to being in the right environment, the carcasses must also avoid becoming a snack for hungry scavengers such as birds and hyenas.

Cheetahs once roamed most of Africa and parts of Asia, but now live in just nine percent of their previous range and have not been seen on the Arabian Peninsula for decades. This is probably due to habitat loss, unregulated hunting and lack of prey, among other things.

In a first for naturally mummified big cats, scientists were also able to peek at the cheetahs’ genes and found that the remains most closely resembled modern cheetahs from Asia and northwest Africa. That information could help guide future efforts to reintroduce the big cats to places where they no longer live.

It comes after archaeologists found evidence of a Roman industrial center on the banks of the River Wear, close to the current site of Nissan’s car factory.

More than 800 whetstones – used to sharpen knives – have been found at the site at Offerton, near Sunderland, as well as 11 stone anchors.

Analysis of sediment by archaeologists from the University of Durham has confirmed that the site on the Wear dates back to Roman times.

The site was discovered by volunteers from the Vedra Hylton Community Association.

Experts say the find is important because it shows that northeast England played an important industrial role within Roman Britain – long before the successive eras of mining, shipbuilding and car manufacturing.