The Botswana government has launched a probe after hundreds of elephant carcasses were found in the popular Okavango Delta area of the southern African nation in recent weeks, reported Reuters.
The Department of Wildlife and National Parks said an investigating team has already been assigned to investigate the 275 mysterious deaths.
“A government investigating team has been on the ground since the first cases were reported,” Mmadi Reuben, principal veterinary officer in the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, told Reuters. “Botswana responded swiftly.”
Reuben said local teams had carried out tests and ruled out anthrax as a cause. He said samples have been sent to Zimbabwe and South Africa for testing for other known pathogens or a novel pathogen.
The Botswana official said that the coronavirus crisis had delayed some samples leaving the country. Although poaching remains a threat in the country, it has been ruled out as the cause of the deaths.
Botswana’s Ministry of Environment said the deaths are presenting somewhat of a mystery as the carcasses appear to be undisturbed, including untouched ivory tusks. According to the ministry, results from the testing labs will be compared to field evaluations made by veterinarians.
Notably, Botswana hosts the largest elephant population in Africa. The country is home to around 130,000 elephants, around one-third of Africa’s total.
“Elephants began dying in huge numbers in early May and the government would normally respond within days to an event of this scale,” Mark Hiley, co-founder of National Park Rescue, said on Thursday. “Yet here we are, months later, with no testing completed and with no more information than we had at the start.”
Elephants Without Borders is estimating that 70% of the deaths are about a month old, while the remaining 30% appear to be more recent, between a day and two weeks old.
