Tragic moment elephant calf tries to wake its dead mother after Sri Lankan villagers poison seven of the animals because they were entering their farmland
The young animal appears to be nudging its parent with its trunk in a hopeless attempt to revive her.
The elephant was one of seven that is believed to have died at the hands of villagers who are suspected of poisoning the animals to stop them raiding their farms.
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A devastated elephant calf desperately tried to wake its dead mother after its carcass was found in a forest
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Authorities suspect villagers poisoned and killed as many as seven elephants that raided their farms
Sri Lankan police search for dead elephants in forest reserve
Four of the dead elephants were found in a forest near Sigiriya, a a fifth-century rock fortress and UNESCO-protected heritage site in central Sri Lanka on September 28.
Three more were later discovered, police said.
Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said: ‘We have found the remains of seven cow elephants, including a tusker, since Friday.’
A pregnant female was among the four carcasses found. Autopsies will be carried out by wildlife officials and vets, to determine if the animals were poisoned.
According to police, a spate of incidents involving wild elephants storming villages and destroying crops in the area might have triggered the killing.
Around 200 elephants are estimated to be killed every year in the country. Many of them fall prey to the wrath of farmers whose farms are raided by the hungry herds of elephants.
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According to police, a spate of incidents involving wild elephants storming villages and destroying crops in the area might have triggered the killing
Marauding elephants kill roughly 50 people per year, mostly when the creatures stray into villages near their habitat.
Experts consider the loss of seven elephants this week a serious blow to the country’s elephant population. All seven animals found dead were said to have been 10 to 15 years old.
According to the World Wildlife Foundation, the Sri Lankan elephant population has fallen almost 65% since the turn of the 19th century.
Today, the Sri Lanka elephant is protected under the Sri Lankan law and killing one theoretically carries the death penalty.