A male tusker that was recently captured in Gudalur died at the Abhayaranayam temporary elephant camp in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) on Friday evening.
Nicknamed “Silver Monstra” as it was regularly spotted in the Silver Cloud Estate in Gudalur, and for its love of consuming Monstera deliciosa plants found in the region, the animal, believed to be around 30-years-old, had sustained an injury to the region around the base of its tail three years ago. The injury is believed to have probably been caused as a result of a fight with another tusker.
The wound had been intermittently treated by the forest department who stuffed antibiotics into fruits and fed the animal. However, a few weeks prior to its capture, the wound had become much larger and forest officials reluctantly intervened after pressure from people on social media who wanted the animal captured and treated.
The elephant was captured without the use of tranquilisers and shifted to a temporary camp in the tiger reserve on June 17, where it was being treated.
K.K. Kaushal, Field Director of MTR, said that the animal had been feeding well and was noticeably gaining weight since its capture. “We were of the hope that it would make a full recovery. However, things took a sudden turn on Friday morning and the elephant became seriously ill, and died in the evening,” he said.
