Mammoth Tusk Spotted Protruding From Riverbank In Alaska

An incredible image snapped by a research specialist shows the tusk of a mammoth protruding from the side of a river in Alaska.

Rather than being embedded into the ground amid a paleontological dig site, as you might expect when it comes to fossils that aren't already on display in museums, this particular tusk was on display in a different manner.

The image shared by Ghaly shows the huge tusk sticking straight out of the side of a massive rock wall towering over the Koyukuk, with the layers of rock formed since this particular mammoth took its last breath causing it to lie right at the bottom of the wall.

The research specialist and Twitter user explained in her post that the mammoth could be found 'on the Koyukuk near Coldfoot Alaska', and suggested it was from the Pleistocene period, which spanned from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago.

Ghaly made clear she hadn't discovered the tusk, but instead had simply been taken to see it on a float that had travelled on the river. According to Ghaly, the ancient object is being monitored with a camera by researchers from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, who have also tied ropes to the tusk to prevent it from falling into the river as a result of erosion to the wall surrounding it.

The majority of these sites, according to the NPS, are 'immediately adjacent to the river’s course'.

Ghaly's image of the tusk has impressed social media users, many of who have liked the image and re-shared it to Twitter and beyond.

Internet users have described the image as 'cool' and 'awesome', while others couldn't resist joking about whether the mammoth was 'okay' given its unfortunate position beneath the wall.