GONAREZHOU NATIONAL PARK, Zimbabwe, Oct. 16 (UPI) — A German hunter paid $60,000 for the opportunity to shoot one of Zimbabwe’s largest elephants earlier this month — echoing the death of Cecil the Lion weeks earlier, news reports said Friday.
The hunt occurred Oct. 8 in southern Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou National Park, the reports said, and resulted in the death of a mature elephant.
The identity of the elephant was not immediately clear, but it was reported to be between 40 and 60 years old.
The unidentified hunter was accompanied by an experienced local guide.
The animal’s shooting death came just a few weeks after the killing of Cecil the Lion by an American dentist sparked global outrage.
According to reports, the elephant’s killing occurred in a legal hunting area of the park.
“Individual elephants such as these should be accorded their true value [in our national heritage] and should be off limits to hunting,” Anthony Kaschula, who manages safaris in the park, posted on Facebook. “In this case, we have collectively failed to ensure that legislation is not in place to help safeguard such magnificent animals.”
The dead elephant was a large animal with long tusks that weighed about 120 pounds each.
The German hunter reportedly paid the $60,000 for a 21-day hunt in the region, which permitted him to kill the elephant and other wild African animals.
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