Ancient bones of mystery creature dug up by children in Yakutian village

The remnants of the ancient creature was found in melting permafrost, revealed Varvara Kuzmina, head of the local school lore museum.

'Locals found it by accident - the smell was strong,' she said. 'It was in spring when snow was melting' - although news of the find has only been reported now.  

One theory is that the bones could be those of an extinct woolly rhinoceros, preserved for tens of thousands of years in permafrost. 

However, there is no confirmation as yet. 

Could this be a woolly rhino? Pictures: Yakutia Media 

The find of skull and rib parts was made close to the village in an area called Kyra-Khatyn. 

Local schoolchildren took an active part in the excavations, said the museum head. 

The discovery follows a recent find in Yakutia - also known as the Sakha Republic - of suspected steppe mammoth tusks by a man digging his potato patch.

The tusks are believed to be around 400,000 years old. 

The latest find, unearthed during road excavations, will be examined by experts to identify the animal. 

Woolly rhinos became extinct in Siberia some 10,000 years ago.

They weighed between two and three tones, and were some two metres tall. 

The animal - covered in a thick shaggy coat - had two horns, the front and larger one being around one metre in length. 

Sasha, the world's only baby woolly rhino

Several years ago, Siberian scientists found Sasha the infant woolly rhino in Yakutia.
Tests showed the carcass to be 34,000 years old.

The animal was around one and a half years old when it died.

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