BKSDA Sends A Team Of Nekropies To Bangka Gajah Sumatra In North Aceh

A resident saw the carcass of the Sumatran elephant (elephas maximus sumatrensis) in the plantation area of a resident of KM 35 in Jabal Antara Hamlet, Nisam Antara District, North Aceh, Sunday (24/3/2024). ANTARA/Rahmad

The Aceh Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) veterinarian team conducted surgery on the carcass or necropsy of the Sumatran elephant (elephas maximus sumatrensis) which was found in the interior of North Aceh Regency.

Head of the Conservation Section Region I BKSDA Aceh Kamarudzaman said necropsy was carried out to determine the cause of death of the protected animal.

"The team is undergoing surgery or necropsy in the field. So, we have not received the results and we cannot confirm the cause of death. Later, after there is a result, we will convey it," Kamarudzaman said as quoted by ANTARA, Monday, March 25.

Before, residents found the elephant carcass in the plantation area in Jabal Antara Hamlet, Nisam Antara District, North Aceh Regency, on Sunday (24/3/2024). When found, the tusk of the wild animal was no longer there.

Kamarudzaman said that his party could not suspect the cause of the elephant's death, whether it died from poison or was hunted and killed for its tusk. The alleged cause of death can only be known after reports from the necropsy team.

"The elephant's game is gone. The ivory is missing whether it was taken after the elephant was found dead or whether the party was not responsible for hunting and killing, then taking the elephant. We don't know for sure," said Kamarudzaman.

Sumatran elephants are protected wildlife. Referring to the list of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, Sumatran elephants are only found on the island of Sumatra with critically endangered species, at high risk of extinction in the wild.

The Aceh BKSDA expressed concern because there were still elephant deaths in several areas in the province.

Therefore, BKSDA urges the public to jointly preserve nature, especially Sumatran elephant wildlife by not destroying forests that are habitats of various types of animals, and not capturing, injuring, killing.

In addition, it also does not store, own, maintain, transport, and trade protected animals alive or dead and does not install snares or toxins that can cause death.

"All negative acts against protected wildlife can be subject to criminal sanctions in accordance with applicable laws and regulations," said Kamarudzaman.