Locals inspect a male Sumatran elephant which was found dead at Ranto Sabon Villager, Aceh Jaya (14/7). In 2012 to 2013, five wild elephants have died due to poaching. PHOTO: ANTARA/SYAHROL RIZAL/Apls
TEMPO.CO, Pekanbaru - Another Sumatran Elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus) was found dead in Riau. The 30-year-old giant animal was found by the residents of Tasik Serai Village, Bengkalis Regency in the concession area of industrial forest of PT Arara Abadi.
"A team has been deployed to the location for identification right upon the receipt of the information," said Natural Resource Conservation Agency (BKSDA) Public Relation Zanir to Tempo on Friday. Zanir estimated the elephant had been dead for 10 days and a team from BKSDA is currently carrying autopsy for the cause of death.
This finding adds up the number of dead elephants in Riau. Three elephants have died, allegedly poisoned, within the last three month. World Wide Fund (WWF) spokesman in Riau had previously expressed his concern about the decreasing number of elephants in the region. He regretted that none of the case has been processed by law so far.
