A baby elephant died after losing half a trunk when it got stuck in a trap set by poachers in Indonesia‘s forests.
Baby elephant meets its death
The critically endangered Sumatran elephant calf, merely a year old when it got stuck in a snare after getting separated from its herd. Villagers of the Aceh Jaya found the calf and brought it over to a conservation agency for treatment and care. The officials at the center stated that they tried their best to save the calf’s life. “She suddenly fell ill from stress and infection late Monday and by morning she was reported dead,” said Rika Marwari, a veterinarian.
However, following the amputation of its trunk, the baby elephant died, succumbing to its injuries. “We couldn’t save it because the injury was severe and infected. We did our best to help it,” said Agus Arianto. Arianto is the head of Aceh Natural Resources Conservation Agency. “We have tried our best, but it can’t be helped either. Its trunk was getting rotten and no longer functioning,” he explained.
Not the first time!
Sumatran elephant is critically endangered. The species is facing risk due to the fast progressing rates of deforestation in the forests of Borneo and Sumatra, their natural habitat. Male elephants are highly vulnerable to poaching due to their highly prized tusks. The tusk of male elephants sells for unusually high prices in the illegal ivory market around the world.
The death of this little calf is the latest mark in the huge list of poaching-related deaths. Previously in July 2021, an adult elephant was found decapitated in a palm plantation in East Acheh. Moreover, its tusks were, in a brutal move, ripped off. However, the calf was one of the last remaining calves among the 700 wild elephants on the island.
