As I write this article in the comfort of my Kenyan home, my heart is filled with sadness and tears, as the emotions compete for my fingertips as my typing is as furious as the torrent of saltwater streaming down my cheeks. It’s not very often that the poaching of an animal makes international news, but when one of Africa’s largest and most loved tuskers falls victim to the nasty world of the illegal ivory trade, it’s time to do something, and quick. There are only a few such magnificent bulls left in the wild and Satao was the champion of them all.
He was well known in the region and his 45 years on Earth gave him enough experience to know the dangers poachers bring. Satao was not only magnificent with his two formidable tusks so long they almost touched the ground, but he was also brilliant. One wildlife film maker remembers how while he was waiting, hidden to capture scenes of wildlife in Satao’s home of Tsavo, something caught his eye far off in the distance. Appearing and disappearing in and out of a mirage, reflecting light every so often was what he thought was a vehicle, but as the object came into better view, he realised it was Satao. The tusker was on his way to a watering hole – a common hiding place for poachers. As the film maker quickly realised, the clever Satao was actually ducking in and out of bushes, hiding his tusks while simultaneously raising his trunk to smell the air for any dangers. He zigzagged his way through, not daring to take any risks by getting caught. Having lived so long and probably having seen other elephant carcasses with their heads mutilated, he was well aware that his tusks were what these poachers were actually after.
With the deluge of recent rains that hit the parched areas of Tsavo National Park in Kenya, Satao started venturing into an area considered a hotbed of poaching activity, though in the past he would stick to a relatively limited area of the park. As reports have revealed, Satao was brought down by an arrow poisoned with Acokanthera, a common shrub which when harvested properly has cardio-toxins that affect the vital organs, and as was demonstrated in Satao’s case, can take down an entire elephant. The horror that ensued found Satao collapsed and sprawled on all fours, exposed with no bush to conceal him, his face mutilated and his prized tusks gone. Only the markings on his back and his near perfect ears were used to identify his carcass.
With only a limited number of resources and park wardens, Satao still had guards assigned to him to keep an eye on his whereabouts, especially with the rise in poaching activities making him a prime target for poachers. Sadly, these guards too were killed while in the line of duty. This wasn’t the first time poachers had tried to get at him, having already survived one attack by poison arrow. Behind the rise in poaching activities in the Africa, especially in Kenya, is the rather appalling demand for ivory and rhino horn products being marketed as aphrodisiacs and medicines, all without any credible research confirming the reliability of these products? The demand is mainly from China, with Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines also adding to the high demand. Moreover, the lack of governmental support towards park rangers and systems to reinforce park management and patrols, coupled with really low fines and punishments for offenders, allows the poachers, middlemen and buyers to literally get away with murder.
Too much irreversible damage has already been done and the world needs to get behind those with the power to make a difference, to sign treaties and accords, to invest in those that put their lives on the line to protect these animals or even demand presidential protection as was the case with Ahmed the Tusker in Kenya back in the 60s and 70s. The legend of Satao will live on, but in vain if our generation doesn’t come together to put an end to the massacre of not only these beautiful creatures, but also those less beautiful and lesser known creatures upon which the balance of human and animal kind depend upon. By writing letters to your representatives in government, supporting grassroots organisations and by keeping this dialogue alive, perhaps we can save these children of God from one of mankind’s greatest failures.