Deaths of 2 Sabah pygmy elephants spark inquest
KOTA KINABALU: The authorities have revealed that while one of the elephants that died at Lok Kawi Wildlife Park has been sick for years, the baby elephant may have contracted a new disease not linked with Borneo pygmy elephants.
Sabah Wildlife Department yesterday confirmed the deaths of the elephants, which occured on two occasions a few days ago and in May.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Christina Liew who visited the park, located 45 minutes from the city centre, yesterday, said Yapid, a 15-yearold male elephant, was found dead on Thursday.
He was a “disabled” elephant with stunted growth due to a swallowing problem which the pachyderm had since he was rescued in 2003, when he was 3months old.
This meant that every time he ate, he would “vomit” some of his meal, thus stunting its growth. He also suffered from chronic gastric issues”.
“Samples have been taken for analysis to check for anything else that might have contributed to his death. But it was a miracle that he has survived that long,” said Liew
Gendu, a 3-year-old female elephant, was found dead on May 8.
The calf, which was born at the park to resident elephants Girl and Boy, was being cared for by her mother and had just started eating solid food at the time of her death.
The death came as a shock to her keepers because she was healthy the day before, said Liew.
“During the post-mortem, most of the internal organs were found to have no abnormalities. Samples have been taken for analysis to determine the cause of death,” said Liew.
Veterinary officer Dr Symphorosa Sipangkui, the officer in charge of the park, said they were sending Gendu’s samples to a United States disease research centre to determine whether its death was caused by Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus ,a disease linked to deaths of young elephants.
It is a highly fatal disease especially for animals born in captivity.
“We did not expect this new disease among Borneo elephants. It is usually found in the US, especially among Asian elephants, so we are sending samples there,” said Symphorosa.
There are 14 elephants in the wildlife park, comprising two calves (below 5 years old) and five sub-adults.
“The elephants have been given the best care and their deaths are unfortunate, but the veterinary officers are doing their best to prevent further deaths”.
In view of this, Liew said the ministry will ask the Sabah Wildlife Department to restructure the management of the park in order for the to allow the veterinary officers to concentrate on the animal husbandry instead of the administration of the park and its facilities.