Poachers kill one of Africa's last remaining 'big tusker' elephants
Source: Agence France-Presse
Poachers kill one of Africa's last remaining 'big tusker' elephants
Agence France-Presse in Nairobi
Monday 6 March 2017 15.57 GMT
One of Africa’s oldest and largest elephants has been killed by poachers in Kenya, according to a conservation group that protects a dwindling group of “big tuskers” estimated to be as few as 25.
Richard Moller of the Tsavo Trust said Satao II, about 50 years old, was found dead on Monday and was believed to have been shot with a poisoned arrow. Two poachers believed to be responsible for the killing were apprehended not long after his carcass was spotted in routine aerial reconnaissance of the Tsavo national park.
“Luckily, through the work we do with the Kenyan Wildlife Service, we were able to find the carcass before the poachers could recover the ivory,” said Moller.
The elephant, named after another giant killed in 2014, was beloved by visitors to the park. Moller said about 15 tuskers, named for impressive tusks that nearly scrape the ground, remained in Kenya out of an estimated worldwide population of 25. “They are icons, they are ambassadors for elephants,” he said.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/06/poachers-kill-satao-ii-elephant-kenya-tsavo-big-tusker
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