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Mammoth Remains Exposed on Danube Riverbed in Northern Bulgaria

Museum teams will remove the bones for scientific dating to confirm their age.

The remains of what historians believe is an ancient mammoth, which emerged after the Danube River's water level receded to a record low, lie on the riverbed near the village of Ryahovo, Slivo pole municipality, Bulgaria, in this handout image released on July 29, 2026. Lyuboslav Yordanov/Slivo pole municipality/Handout via REUTERS
The remains of what historians believe is an ancient mammoth, which emerged after the Danube River's water level receded to a record low, lie on the riverbed near the village of Ryahovo, Slivo pole municipality, Bulgaria, in this handout image released on July 29, 2026. Lyuboslav Yordanov/Slivo pole municipality/Handout via REUTERS
The remains of what historians believe is an ancient mammoth, which emerged after the Danube River's water level receded to a record low, lie on the riverbed near the village of Ryahovo, Slivo pole municipality, Bulgaria, in this handout image released on July 29, 2026. Lyuboslav Yordanov/Slivo pole municipality/Handout via REUTERS
A water in the Danube river has dropped to a record low point, exposing parts of the riverbed

Overview

  • A Ryahovo resident found bones on the exposed Danube riverbed and villagers alerted the Regional History Museum in Ruse on Wednesday.
  • Museum experts who inspected the site reported a lower jaw, two tusks and a possible rib and said the remains are provisionally linked to a mammoth.
  • The museum plans a careful removal and controlled excavation followed by radiocarbon or other dating to establish the find’s origin and age.
  • The discovery occurred as Danube levels fell to record lows after prolonged heatwaves and drought that have reduced flows across European rivers and disrupted shipping.
  • Scientists say the bones could shed light on Ice Age environments but warned that drought-driven exposure risks damaging fragile remains and requires rapid professional recovery.