Indonesia baby elephant dies after losing half of her trunk

By RISKA MUNAWARAH
Associated Press

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — Conservation officials say a baby elephant in Indonesia’s Sumatra island has died after losing half her trunk to a trap set by poachers who prey on the endangered species. The head of Aceh province’s conservation agency told reporters Tuesday that the baby elephant died despite hopes that the emergency operation to amputate her trunk could save her life. The 1-year-old female was among the last of the island’s 700 wild Sumatran elephants. She was found very weak with a snare still embedded in her almost-severed trunk on Sunday in a forested village in the Aceh province. Indonesian government data shows the Sumatran elephant population has shrunk from 1,300 in 2014 to 693, down nearly 50% in the past seven years.