In what can only be called a “mammoth” discovery, the body of a mummified baby woolly mammoth was found Tuesday in the Dawson City gold fields region.

The Yukon government, along with the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in government, announced the unique find this morning.

“On June 21, a near-complete, mummified baby woolly mammoth was found in the Klondike gold fields within Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Traditional Territory,” they said in a statement.

“Miners for the Treadstone Mining company working on Eureka Creek uncovered the frozen woolly mammoth while excavating through the permafrost.

“This is a significant discovery for Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in and the Government of Yukon. Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in elders named the mammoth calf Nun cho ga, meaning ‘big baby animal’ in the Hän language.”

According to the release, the Yukon has a world-renowned fossil record of ice age animals, but mummified remains with skin and hair are rarely unearthed.

A quick examination of the woolly mammoth suggests she is female and roughly the same size as the 42,000-year-old infant mummy woolly mammoth “Lyuba” discovered in Siberia in 2007.

Geologists from the Yukon Geological Survey and University of Calgary who recovered the frozen mammoth on site suggest that Nun cho ga died and was frozen in permafrost during the ice age, more than 30,000 years old.

“These amazing ice age remains provide an extremely detailed glimpse into a time when Nun cho ga roamed the Yukon along side wild horses, cave lions and giant steppe bison,” the two governments said.

The discovery of Nun cho ga marks the first near-complete and best-preserved mummified woolly mammoth found in North America. A partial mammoth calf, named Effie, was found in 1948 at a gold mine in interior Alaska. 

“Nun cho ga is the most complete mummified mammoth found in North America,” the statement said.

“In the months to come, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in and the Government of Yukon will work together to respectfully preserve and learn more about Nun cho ga and share these stories and information with the community of Dawson City, residents of the Yukon and the global scientific community.”

It didn’t take long for various politicians and scientists to comment on the exciting find.

Yukon paleontologist Dr. Grant Zazula said, “As an ice age palaeontologist, it has been one of my life-long dreams to come face-to-face with a real woolly mammoth. That dream came true today.

“Nun cho ga is beautiful and one of the most incredible mummified ice age animals ever discovered in the world. I am excited to get to know her more.”

An excited Zazula spoke to the Star this morning about the find.

He said it’s more common to find such specimens in Siberia than in the Yukon and Alaska simply due to difference in terrain.

Most of the frozen and mummifed mammoths in Sibera come out of flat tundra locations where standing water, such as ponds, were more common. That made it easier for mammoths to be entombed in shoreline habitats after they likely drowned.

That kind of habitat was much less common in North America in Alaska and the Yukon, which is more rugged.

In this case, initial theories suggest the mammoth calf, which was approximately one month old, became trapped and drowned along the shoreline of the creek, possibly after being separated from its mother. It was quickly covered and frozen after it died.

It was found entombed under a layer of volcanic ash that has been studied fairly well.

The calf was fortuitously found by a miner, explained Zazula and Debbie Nagano of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in. He was using a loader to scoop up the rick black clay and muck in the area, when he spotted the mammoth.

“The past couple of days have been the most incredible days of my life,” Zazula said. “I’ve always dreamed of looking at a mammoth face-to-face.

“It’s a deeply powerful and moving experience for Indigenous people to find something like this, and it’s an incredible day in the Yukon. Nothing like this has been found in North America before.”

“It’s a very profound experience,” Nagano added. That sentiment was shared by others.

“There will be one thing that stands out in a person’s entire life, and I can guarantee you this is my one thing,” said Brian McCaughan of Treadstone Mining.

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in elder Peggy Kormendy added, “It’s amazing. It took my breath away when they removed the tarp.

“We must all treat it with respect. When that happens, it is going to be powerful and we will heal. We must, as a people.”

Tourism and Culture Minister Ranj Pillai said the territory “has always been an internationally renowned leader for ice age and Beringia research.

“We are thrilled about this significant discovery of a mummified woolly mammoth calf. Without strong partnerships between placer miners, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and the Yukon government, discoveries like this could not happen.” 

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Chief Roberta Joseph also commented on the discovery.

“This is as a remarkable recovery for our First Nation, and we look forward to collaborating with the Yukon government on the next steps in the process for moving forward with these remains in a way that honours our traditions, culture, and laws,” she said.

“We are thankful for the elders who have been guiding us so far and the name they provided. We are committed to respectfully handling Nun cho ga as she has chosen now to reveal herself to all of us.”

Brooke Rudolf, the Klondike Placer Miners’ Association’s executive director, said the association “is thrilled about this incredible discovery.

“We are proud to work with responsible placer miners, like the McCaughan family, that regularly contribute to the Yukon’s paleontological record through their work.

“We extend thanks to Brian and Sharon and the crew, as well as Yukon’s Paleontology Program and Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in for coming together so quickly to preserve and celebrate this rare find.”