Four people have been arrested in Sabah State, Borneo, following the death of a Borneo Pygmy Elephant, Elephas maximus borneensis, last week. The male Elephant calf was found on Wednesday 25 September 2019, near Dumpas in Tawau District, tied to a log and shot more than 70 times according to the Sabah Wildlife Department. Its tusks had been hacked off, leading to suspicions that the killing
was by poachers looking for ivory, though the somewhat amateurish nature
of the killing suggests that it may have been done by local people
rather that experienced Elephant hunters. Police in Tawau District announced early on Wednesday 2 October that four people, described as three Malaysians and a foreign national, have been arrested in connection with the incident and a number of firearms seized. The suspects have been charged with firearms offences, and further charges under the Wildlife Protection Enactment may follow.
An Elephant calf found shot multiple times and tied to a log near Dunpas in Tawau District, Sabah, on 25 September 2019. It is thought that the body may have been tied to a the log to that the body would be eaten by Crocodiles rather that floating away from what the poachers hopped was a remote spot. AFP.
Borneo Pygmy Elephants, Elephas maximus borneensis, are considered to be a subspecies of the Asian Elephant, Elephas maximus. They were generally believed to be the decedents of working Elephants introduced by the Sultan of Sulu in the eighteenth century, until a genetic study published in 2003, suggested that they were a distinct lineage that has lived in isolation on the island for much longer, a finding which may eventually lead to them being reclassified as a separate species. The Asian Elephant is considered to be Endangered in the wild under the terms of the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species. The Borneo Pygmy Elephants do not have a separate assessment, but are known to be suffering from habitat fragmentation due to the expansion of large plantations of crops such as Palm oil in the areas of northern Borneo where they live, as well as increasing conflict with Humans driven both by the value of their tusks and their tendency to damage crops.
Sabah wildlife department
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Sabah wildlife department
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Sabah wildlife department
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Sabah wildlife department
Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/10/01/endangered-pygmy-elephant-found-riddled-70-bullets-tusk-poachers-10837009/?ito=cbshare
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Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/10/01/endangered-pygmy-elephant-found-riddled-70-bullets-tusk-poachers-10837009/?ito=cbshare
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