COVID-19 DUMMIES - 'Catastrophic' elephant deaths mystery: Hundreds have dropped dead in Botswana, and no one knows why

[Dickfore]

Hundreds of elephants have mysteriously dropped dead in
Botswana, leaving wildlife experts and government officials
searching for answers.

Dr. Niall McCann, director of conservation at U.K.-based charity
National Park Rescue, told the BBC that since the start of May,
colleagues in Botswana had spotted over 350 elephant carcasses
in the country’s Okavango Delta.

Heartbreaking aerial photos show the dead elephants dotted
around the Botswanan landscape. The mysterious deaths have also
sparked concerns about the potential health impact on people
living in the local area.

“A catastrophic die-off of elephants is happing in northern
Botswana, and no one knows why. It’s vital that a team of
independent experts visit and sample the carcasses before any
more elephants die, or this spills over into the local human
population,” McCann tweeted Wednesday.

Government officials in Botswana say there is no evidence that
poaching is involved in the mysterious elephant deaths.

McCann told the Guardian that elephants have been seen walking
around in circles, which might indicate a neurological condition
that is afflicting them. The biologist told the Guardian that
some of the elephants have fallen straight on their faces,
suggesting that they died quickly. Others, however, are dying
more slowly.

An unknown pathogen or poisoning are two possibilities,
according to the Guardian, which says that Anthrax has been
ruled out.

Phys.org reports that last year, more than 100 elephants in
Botswana died in a suspected outbreak of natural Anthrax.
Subsequent investigations reported than elephants died from
Anthrax while others were victims of drought, according to
Phys.org.

The Guardian reports that cyanide poisoning, which is sometimes
used by poachers, seems an unlikely cause of the latest die-off
given that the dead bodies of scavengers, such as vultures, have
not been seen near the elephant carcasses.

Fox News has reached out to Dr. McCann and National Park Rescue
on this story.

In a statement released on July 2, the Botswanan government said
that investigations into the unexplained deaths are ongoing.

“Following the mysterious deaths of elephants in the areas
around Seronga since March 2020, to date, 275 elephant carcasses
have been verified against the 365 reported cases,” it said.
“Three laboratories in Zimbabwe, South Africa and Canada have
been identified to process the samples taken from the dead
elephants which will be interpreted against field veterinary
assessments of clinically ill and dead elephants.”

Seronga is a village located near the start of the Okavango
Delta.

“Members of the public are assured that tusks are being removed
from the dead elephants and carcasses within proximity to human
settlements continue to be destroyed,” added the Botswana
government in its statement.

The African elephant is classified as “vulnerable” on the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List.

Last year, more than 500 vultures in Botswana were poisoned
after elephant carcasses were laced with chemicals.

Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers

https://www.foxnews.com/science/elephant-deaths-mystery-hundreds-
have-dropped-dead-in-botswana