Satao

If you have been following our blog or news around African elephants for a while, then you will have undoubtedly heard of Satao – one of the largest elephants in the world. His weight was estimated over 7 tons and his tusks were so long he could rest them on the ground.

By logic, his size should have made him unreachable for any natural predators. However, in a world of destruction and corruption, logic doesn’t prevent the extinction of the African elephant. Satao fell prey to poachers for his ivory in May 2014, which triggered a huge wave of grief in Kenya followed by international outrage in the news and on Twitter and Facebook.

Born in the late 1960s in Tsavo, Satao caused great amazement to everyone who ever caught a glimpse of him; rangers, tourists but also poachers. Many believe that Satao had the understanding that his tusks were beyond the ordinary. In fact, he had adjusted his behaviour to keep his tusks out of sight, which was incredibly impressive and heartbreaking at the same time. Impressive, because this once again proved how very intelligent elephants really are, and sad, because Satao was nonetheless poisoned by arrows that caused his death.

Photos of his hacked off face and tusks circled the Internet, and recorded the bitter loss and undignified death of this incredibly rare tusker.

Elephant Gin has named 800 bottles after Satao and wants to help remind people around the globe that the need to protect the African elephant is bigger than ever.

Get involved and spread the word!

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