The sadness is deep for fans of the savannah that after so many safari, had learned to recognize it.
Satao II, one of the few remaining elephants by the giant tusks in Kenya, the "big tuskers" (estimated there would be no more than thirty between Kenya and Tanzania), it was killed near Voi River, inside the Park national Tsavo East.
Satao II, exemplary of over fifty years of age who had given the name of the mythical "big tusker" Satao, also dead at the hands of bastards poachers in 2014, was killed with poison darts by suspected poachers to get possession of his precious tusks weighing fifty kilograms each.
The only good news in this tragic story is that they did it.
Two years ago in the same manner unknown criminals they had tried to make out another copy by the giant fangs, Wide Satao that was saved by a miracle from the KWS and the David Sheldrick Foundation (read the article by Malindikenya about that fact).
This time the KWS rangers, who in recent days have been involved in heavy exchanges of fire in the night in the vicinity of the reserves of Taita Hills and Tsavo, killing six poachers and losing one of colleagues, have been unable to locate the culprit but suspect it can be turned into shepherds smugglers.
"China has blocked the import of ivory from Africa - said the spokesman of the KWS, Paul Gathitu - is not clear what poacher today may be considered a gain, against the risk of his life, snatch away the tusks of an elephant ".
For that we suspect of new threats coming from other environments such as that of the herders who have long cows graze in the bush, because of the drought. As is known in the Tsavo and nearby reserves have been built many dams to allow the animals to drink.