Sri Lanka Saves Its Tallest Tusker After Shooting

When wildlife enthusiast Pathum Bandara spotted Kavantissa limping through northwestern Sri Lanka last September, he discovered something heartbreaking: the country's tallest living tusker had been shot in the right foreleg.

The Department of Wildlife Conservation immediately dispatched a veterinary team to treat the majestic elephant. Veterinary surgeon Isuru Hewakottage sedated Kavantissa, cleaned and treated the wound, and administered powerful antibiotics to prevent infection.

The treatment worked. Kavantissa has begun moving between forest patches again, showing signs of recovery that have given conservationists hope.

His injury carries extra weight because gunshot wounds have claimed several of Sri Lanka's iconic tuskers in recent years. Sankha, a young tusker often seen with Kavantissa, died in 2022 after a previous gunshot injury left him with a stiff leg that caused him to fall into a pit.

In 2007, Sri Lanka lost its last known cross-tusker to a gunshot wound that shattered his leg bones and damaged his spine. Earlier this year, another majestic tusker named Bhathiya died after suffering similar injuries.

The Ripple Effect

Kavantissa's rescue has ignited a conservation movement across Sri Lanka. The Society for Conservation of Wild Elephants is now calling for a special protection program modeled after Kenya's successful efforts to safeguard super tuskers.

Kenya protected the legendary elephant Ahmed with round-the-clock armed guards in the 1970s, allowing him to live to 55 and die naturally. More recently, Craig, one of Amboseli's famous super tuskers, lived for 54 years under protection from community rangers and conservation organizations.

Conservationists want to declare select Sri Lankan elephants as "living national heritage" with dedicated protection units. A recent assessment valued each wild elephant in Sri Lanka at 3.8 billion rupees, or $11.5 million, reflecting their ecological, cultural and economic importance.

The proposal faces challenges in Sri Lanka's densely populated landscape where elephants and humans share limited space. But wildlife teams are already monitoring Kavantissa closely to ensure he receives ongoing care.

One elephant's recovery has become a rallying cry for protecting Sri Lanka's natural treasures before they're lost forever.