Kota Kinabalu: A young male elephant with a snare trap injury on its front right leg was rescued at Taliwas, in Lahad Datu – the latest in a string of casualties involving pygmy elephants that are only found in Sabah.State Wildlife Department Public Relations Officer Siti Nur'ain Ampuan Acheh in a statement, Thursday, said the department's Wildlife Rescue Unit managed to capture the elephant, estimated to be between seven and nine-years-old, before taking it for treatment Tuesday afternoon.She said the snare trap caused a two-inch deep wound on the leg which was infested with maggots in the area of the knot.
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"Most areas of the wound are already showing signs of healing but prognosis is still guarded," she said. General l treatments have been given to the elephant and topical wound management will continue.
"Its general condition such as hydration and appetite will be observed as the injury still needs time to fully heal," she said, adding that the elephant will be transferred to Borneo Elephant Sanctuary for further treatment and observation.On another development, a post mortem was conducted by the department's veterinary officer on the carcass of an elephant calf found floating in the Kinabatangan river near Pangi Forest Reserve on the evening of Aug 13.
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Physical examination did not find any external injury on the body of the elephant estimated to be between two and three-years-old. She said preliminary finding of the post mortem concluded that the elephant suffered from ulcerative gastritis that leads to severe loss of blood in its gastrointestinal. The cause of ulcerative gastritis can be of infectious or non-infectious origin.
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She said samples of vital internal organs were taken for toxicology and bacteriology analysis. Confirmation on the cause of death can only be ascertained when results of the analysis of the samples are obtained.
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This is the first case involving instances of elephants found dead this month. Last month alone, three deaths involving juvenile elephants were reported in Kg Karamuak, Tongod, Loo Woo Thien Plantation in Lahad Datu and the Kuamut Forest Reserve in Kinabatangan, respectively.
