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Pygmy Elephant Reportedly Dies from Gunshot in Borneo

Pygmy elephant

A Borneo Pygmy elephant has reportedly died in Malaysia’s part of the island. The elephant was found dead in a river.

According to International Conservation group WWF, currently, there are 1,500 surviving Borneo pygmy elephants. The endangered subspecies can reach a height of 3 metres.

The cause of death of the pygmy elephant is still being investigated by the police. Police are still unable to confirm whether the elephant’s tusks had been removed as they are currently awaiting a post-mortem report.

The male elephant, estimated to be 10 years old, was found floating by a riverbank and attached to a tree with a single rope. Earlier, local media outlets claimed that it had died due to gunshot wounds. According to state wildlife director Augustine Tuuga, it died four days ago.

Pygmy elephants are regularly found dead in Borneo. They are often killed by poachers who aim to sell ivory via the black market and villagers who see them as a disturbance. About 100 are known to have died in the past decade due to bullet wounds and poisoning.

“It’s not easy to get evidence of who did all those acts, not easy to get the suspect, because people are not giving any information to us,” Tuuga added.

Source: The Jakarta Post
Image: Astro Awani

See: The Last Wild Men of Borneo: Fantastic Visions in the Realm of the Imagination

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