Of the world’s last remaining ‘big tuskers’ (elephants with tusks weighing more than 45kgs each) it’s thought that there are only 20 left on Earth. About half of these live in Tsavo, Kenya.
British wildlife photographer Will Burrard-Lucas has published photos of one of these old pachyderms, dubbed ‘Elephant Queen’ shortly before she died of natural causes.
‘If I hadn’t looked upon her with my own eyes, I might not have believed that such an elephant could exist in our world,’ says Burrard-Lucas.
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The photographs will appear alongside images of other big tuskers in a book entitled Land of Giants. The book will go on sale on 20 March and it aims to reach as many people as possible without ‘regard for profit’. It was conceptualised along with the Tsavo Trust, which supports the Kenyan Wildlife Services as part of an endevour to create awareness in the hope of saving these long-tusked mammals.
Tsavo Trust’s Big Tusker Project was established ‘in an urgent response to a terrible surge in poaching,’ to try and protect the tuskers, before they are lost forever.
View more about the book Land of Giants here .
Featured image: Will Burrard-Lucas
