A baby elephant weighing about 100kg has been found dead, with a patch of skin flayed, four feet gone, and a part of the tail cut off, in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, according to a local wildlife official.

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>> Elephant reportedly dies of exhaustion while serving tourists in Vietnam; gayal drops dead Pham Van Lang, deputy director of the Dak Lak Elephant Conservation Center, on Wednesday said he had been informed of the death of the elephant in Ea H’Leo District. The death was reported on Tuesday afternoon by locals who discovered the animal’s body in the forest subzone 71B, managed by Ea Wy Forestry Company in Cu Amung Commune, Lang said.   He added that he had sent a subordinate to the subzone to seek further information and look into the cause of the death. Local residents said a herd of about 20 elephants flocked to the forest area to search for food yesterday. As the animals looked fierce, nobody dared to approach them, locals said, adding that after these elephants left the commune, they found one of them lying dead in the subzone. Competent agencies have examined the scene and found a large wound on the body of the elephant. The wound appeared to be created by an adult elephant that had stamped its leg on the young animal, these agencies said. Therefore, the elephant calf could have been stepped on by one of the adult elephants in their herd, the agencies initially concluded. An investigation into the death of the baby elephant is underway. On March 8, the authorities of Krong Na Commune, Buon Don District in Dak Lak said that they had received a report on the death of a 40-year-old elephant. The animal died of exhaustion while serving tourists at the Ban Don tourist area, according to news website VietNamNet. Another news website reported that the animal met its end while carrying tourists in the site. The dead animal was owned by Y Ka Tuk, a local man, who then conducted an offering ceremony for it in accordance with local traditions. When alive, the elephant was worth VND700 million (US$32,830).

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