Okay, maybe technically (under the microscope and with chemical analysis) an elk' s " ivories" are not ivory, BUT if you' ve actually shot an elk, cut them out, touched them, felt them, studied them, scratched or shaped them, and made something out of them, then you know:

They are MORE like ivory than they are like teeth! They do NOT feel like dentin and enamal. That' s why they call them ivories. I haven' t read any scientific literature on this but like Beaver implied I' d bet it is something left over from the process of evolution.

It' s just one more thing that makes elk special. [8D][8D]

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM