Around 90 elephants found dead in Botswana, poaching feared

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Carcasses of around 90 elephants, reportedly poached were found during an aerial survey near a renowned wildlife sanctuary in Botswana.

Bodies of elephants with their tusks removed were sighted by Elephants Without Borders (EWB), a non-profit conservation organization. The organization that also conducts the Great Elephant Census issued a detailed report regarding the incident.

"I'm shocked, I'm completely astounded. The scale of elephant poaching is by far the largest I've seen or read about anywhere in Africa to date," Mike Chase, founding director of EWB told BBC.

"When I compare this to figures and data from the Great Elephant Census, which I conducted in 2015, we are recording double the number of fresh poached elephants than anywhere else in Africa," he added.

Carcasses were found near Okavango Delta wildlife sanctuary; a prominent international tourist destination spread over 22,000 km.

The elephant census, began in July this year, is likely to be completed by October. The last two surveys, conducted in 2010 and 2014, estimated around 130,000 elephants in northern Botswana. The country is home to 37 percent of its continent's endangered elephant population.

"Our aerial surveys and satellite movement studies reveal elephants have expanded their range by 35 percent between 2001 and 2017," EWB maintained.

However, conservationists are alarmed over Botswana's recent decision to disarm its anti-poaching units. The country has recently shifted from strict rules to control poaching like shoot-to-kill-policy against poachers.

Wildlife experts claim at present Botswana elephant population might be stable, but overall Africa tusker population has reduced by 30 percent in the last seven years.

Recently, lawmakers have also proposed to lift the hunting ban on elephants in Botswana in areas outside of game reserves and national parks, especially in marginal rangelands, to reduce human-elephant conflict.

(Cover: A herd of elephants at Sands Lodge, Botswana, August 3, 2015. /VCG Photo)