Nun cho ga, the startlingly well-preserved baby woolly mammoth discovered near Dawson City in 2022, has been transported by air to Ottawa, according to Yukon government and Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Government sources.
In an email to the News, a spokesperson for the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Government said that Nun cho ga had been delivered to the Canadian Conservation Institute this week.
While statements from the territorial and First Nation governments do not elaborate on what the baby mammoth is doing at the conservation institute, it’s reasonable to assume the animal has been approved for preservation.
Late last year, Valerie Monahan, a conservator with the Yukon government, told attendees at a community info session in Dawson that the plan is for Nun cho ga’s remains to be sent to the institute in Ottawa for preservation. At the time, an application had been filed with the institute and was pending approval.
Other remains found in the Yukon have previously been preserved at the Canadian Conservation Institute, including the remains of a gray wolf pup unearthed near Dawson City in 2016 and prehistoric caribou and horse specimens discovered in the territory.
Once Nun cho ga’s time in Ottawa draws to a close, the baby mammoth remains will be repatriated to the traditional territory of the Trʼondëk Hwëchʼin First Nation, according to comments made last year by Debbie Nagano, the director of heritage with Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in.
Nagano added that Nun cho ga would not be displayed like a museum specimen behind a glass case and would not become a tourist attraction.
“We find it very disrespectful. You’ve got to take into consideration that […] we have a connection to her, and it’s almost like a family member. So, you wouldn’t do that to a family member,” Nagano said. “So, we’re gonna have to try to figure out how to do it in a respectful way.”
Nun cho ga was discovered by an employee of Treadstone Gold on June 21, 2022. The baby mammoth is believed to have died more than 30,000 years ago.
The prehistoric animal’s name means “big animal baby” in the Hän language.
Contact Matthew Bossons at matthew.bossons@yukon-news.com