In 2008, miners in north-western Canada have discovered ice-age camel bones from a gold mine in the Klondike in 2008. Three fossils were found from the mine that are considered to be the first western camel bones found in the territory of Alaska in so many years.

Researchers said that DNA is making them to redraw the family tree of the now-extinct, ice-age animal. Grant Zazula, a paleontologist with Department of Tourism and Culture, was of the view that for so many years it was considered that the Western Camels that lived in North America were linked to llamas and alpacas.

But now, Zazuala said that there is evidence that the Western Camels were more closely linked to camels from Asia and Arabia. The researchers said that for them the gold is the fossils. "For us the gold is the fossils, because it's this incredible resource for understanding extinct and ancient animals of the ice age. It's really our gold mine for sure", affirmed Zazuala.

Earlier, paleontologists have studied camels on the basis of comparative analysis. They divide bones and fossils into two main groups that made the animals found in Arabia, Africa and Asia and llamas and alpacas found in South America.

Things changed with the discovery of the fossils, which were preserved in the permafrost. They discovered the fossils while they were hydraulically stripping the earth near Dawson City. The bones were so preserved that they were having DNA. The researchers said that the findings have made scientists to again study other species.