Satao (elephant)

Satao was an African elephant that lived in Tsavo East National Park, one of the largest wildlife parks in the world, with a large population of elephants. He was thought to have been born during the late 1960s and to have been at least 45 years old when he was killed. He was estimated to be one of the largest elephants in the world at the time of his death and has been described as one of Kenya's most iconic and well-known tuskers (i.e., male elephants with tusks that almost reach the ground). Satao's tusks were over long and he was estimated to be the largest of the few remaining tuskers living in Kenya. Elephant ivory poaching has been a widespread problem in Africa. In 2013, over 20,000 African elephants were killed for their ivory. The slaughter of African elephants is driven by the black market value of elephant ivory. The illicit trade in ivory is primarily in Asia where ivory sells for several thousands of dollars per kilogram. Satao's tusks were estimated to weigh more than each. The increase in poaching is driven in large part by organised crime and rebel groups seeking ways to fund insurgencies in Africa. Satao was featured in the Apple TV+ original The Elephant Queen. However, during filming of the documentary, Satao was killed by the poachers. ==Death==

In March 2014, Satao was found with two seeping wounds in his flank from poisoned arrows shot into him, which were confirmed by veterinarians who rushed to the scene to treat him. After a number of days, Satao recovered from his wounds. On 2 June 2014, Richard Moller of the Tsavo Trust found a huge elephant carcass lying in a swamp near the boundary of Tsavo East National Park. The tusks had been cut off, and the face was badly mutilated, so the carcass could not be identified with certainty at that time. For about 10 days, Moller and the Kenya Wildlife Service had searched for Satao before concluding that he was dead. He was killed by a poisoned arrow shot deep into his left flank on or around 30 May 2014. ==Arrests==

On 20 June 2014, Kenya Wildlife Services reported that service rangers arrested three suspects for killing Satao. Paul Muya, a spokesperson for the Kenya Wildlife Service, said that they were tracked down based on intelligence the Service had acquired. == Public response ==

The death of Satao resulted in a public outpouring of support for policy to reduce poaching. In New Orleans, a TV Show was created named "AWE for Awesome Wildlife Effort" to interview artists, such as Anne London, on educating the public regarding endangered species. A unit called "The Great Tuskers of AWE" was created to march in Mardi Gras parades with a large fiberglass elephant float and The Krewe of Tusk and Horn marched on World Animal Day in the French Quarter. In neighboring Kenner, Louisiana, a 16-foot-tall elephant sculpture was erected. ==Satao 2 or Satao II==

Another supertusker, named Satao 2 or Satao II, was killed in 2017, leaving six surviving supertuskers. Satao 2/Satao II's tusks were, however, intact, as the poachers did not have the chance to take them. ==See also==