Image copyright Courtesy Facebook Image caption Yellowknife launched the poll to name the sculpture earlier this month

A shaggy mascot in the northern Canadian city of Yellowknife has been granted a new moniker: "Elon Muskox".

The muskox sculpture bears little resemblance to its namesake, Elon Musk, the headline-grabbing tech entrepreneur.

But residents in the capital city of Northwest Territories took a liking to the play on words in an online contest to name the new artwork.

Yellowknife launched the poll to name the sculpture earlier this month.

"We are definitely hoping to get a response from Elon Musk, maybe even invite him to our city for a meet and greet with Elon Muskox," Yellowknife communications officer Stephanie Vandeputte told the BBC.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Tesla founder Elon Musk

Yellowknife resident Eric Fuhrmannwith came up with the winning entry, which received 123 votes.

Runner-ups include Me'die'ah, which means the bearded one; Ethel, after Ethel Blondin-Andrew, the first indigenous woman elected to Canada's parliament; and Musky McMuskoxface.

The 11-foot mosaïculture muskox - created from a combination of sculpture and "fur" made from growing plants - is currently at home in front of the Yellowknife city hall.

Muskox are stocky, woolly, hoofed and horned mammals that roam the Arctic tundra and are native to Canada, Greenland and the US state of Alaska.

While they bear a resemblance to oxen, they are more closely related to goats than cattle.