Poachers 'massacre' six elephants at Ethiopian national park – with one animal shot 30 times
- At least six elephants were killed in one day at Mago National Park, Ethiopia
- One elephant was shot by 30 bullets, according to the chief park warden
- Poachers attacked while elephants were drinking and removed their tusks
Poachers have killed at least six elephants in one day at a national park in Ethiopia, the largest such slaughter in memory in the East African nation.
The chief warden for Mago National Park described the incident which took place last week as a 'massacre'.
The elephant carcasses were found with their tusks removed after the animals were attacked while drinking at the Omo river.
Poachers have killed at least six elephants in one day at a national park in Ethiopia, the largest such slaughter in memory in the East African nation. Above, an elephant found with its tusks removed
One elephant was pelted with 30 bullets, park warden Ganabu Balmy told the BBC.
'The elephants were killed while they ventured out of the Mago National Park to drink water,' Bulmi said.
'The poachers then removed all the tusks from the elephants.
'It was a mass killing.
'We haven't seen anything like this before.'
Two other elephants might have been killed the same day, May 26, the warden said, and an investigation continues.
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'It also has proved difficult to apprehend the perpetrators because the locals who live in the area are armed and were not willing to engage officials,' Mr Ganabul said.
According to wildlife officials, Ethiopia had more than 10,000 elephants in the 1970s but poaching and habitat degradation have reduced the number to about 2,500 to 3,000 in recent years.
'We don't think there is an organised poaching in Ethiopia.
The chief warden for Mago National Park described the incident which took place last week as a 'massacre'
'Last year we documented up to 10 elephant killings,' said Daniel Pawlos, director for trafficking and control at the Wildlife Conservation Authority, a government entity.
'But whenever there's demand, that triggers illegal poaching.
'What makes the latest poaching different is the high number of elephants killed within a day.'
Officials suspect that most elephant tusks and finished products are slipped out of the country to China and Southeast Asian countries.
In 2015, Ethiopian officials burned 6.1 tons of illegal elephant tusks, ivory trinkets, carvings and various forms of jewellery to discourage poaching and the ivory trade.
