Indonesia: Female elephant found dead in Bengkulu

The Jakarta Post 1 Jul 18;

The decomposed carcass of a protected Sumatran elephant was found on Saturday in a palm oil plantation run by residents in Mukomuko regency, Bengkulu.

A preliminary investigation estimated that the female elephant, about 20 years old, had died about a week ago, kompas.com reported.

The plantation is located in the Air Teramang limited production forest (HPT) in Retak Mudik village.

A joint team comprising the Bengkulu Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), the police and veterinarians is working to determine the cause of death.

An autopsy was performed on the animal on Saturday.

It showed that several organs had started to decompose.

"Samples [taken from the elephant] will be examined in the laboratory to determine the cause of death,” Suharno from BKSDA Bengkulu said on Sunday.

The team found feces and footprints belonging to wild elephants where the carcass was found, which is the habitat of the last population of wild elephants in Bengkulu, according to Suharno

Two huts in the palm oil plantation, the BKSDA said, had been destroyed by the wild elephants. (stu/ipa)