I still remember the movie ‘Tom Yum Goong’ where Kham had to travel all the way to Australia to bring back the elephant that was stolen from him by illegal wildlife traders. This 2005 action blockbuster still brings back memories. But, why I recollect this today, is because of something that happened much closer to home. In the movie, Kham brings down the brute wrestlers, guarding the illegal poachers, by slicing the tendons on their legs. “That’s how you bring down a giant” – break the legs. This time it was an elephant on the receiving side.

When the patrolling staff of Similipal Wildlife Circle, Odisha, came across this bull, the damage has already been done. The snare, which looked just like the regular plastic rope used in cow hitch, had already cut through ten inches of the skin. What followed was the setting in of infection and septicemia. The mature male, which would have been a strong contender in adding to the population of its species, was rendered immobile. The giant was hardly able to move but managed pitiful glances at the team of responders who were trying to do their best in setting things right. For a country that calls its elephants, “The National Heritage Animal”, incidents such as these only amplify our distrust in calling ourselves human.

The damage done by the snare | Photo by Rudra P. Mahapatra

Dr. Indramani Nath, head of surgery at the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), exclaims, “It must have been more than 10 days for the infection to reach this stage. All the while, the elephant had tried to escape the snare, but tightening it more in the effort.” No amount of medication could turn things around. The jumbo died after two days of treatment.

While snares aren’t active killers of elephants, they are certainly a tool in slowing down the animal. Once they are mellowed down, it gets easier for poachers to track them down and put in the decisive bullet without much fuss. Not just elephants, snares, also called the ‘silent killers’, are a threat to a variety of wildlife. This must have been a rare case when the elephant had unfortunately got its feet entangled in a snare that targeted a smaller animal, like wild pig. In any case, the death that follows is the worst of its kind.

Anti Snare Walk with Seema Surkasha Bal (SSB) personnel  in Valmiki TR | Photo by Pappu Yadav

WTI conceptualized Anti Snare Walks (ASW) in 2011 to conduct organized walks and joint search operations with the forest department to identify and remove snares in Bandipur. Initially carried in the poaching-prone areas and park boundaries of Bandipur, Anti Snare Walks are carried across 17 protected areas in the country today. Alongside removing snares, the team also conducts regular awareness workshops in villages and fringe areas. Since the initiation of ASW in 2011 to till date, the WTI team has helped remove 6635 such snares from the wild fringes. Each snare removed is a life saved.

The snare that brought down an elephant | Photo by Rudra P. Mahapatra

For an animal, there is no concept of a boundary. Even the ones entering farmlands, come out in search of food, which has been depleting rapidly over the past decade. Even if it is not for poaching, death by snare is not something any living being deserves. You too can play a role in helping us remove these snares before another wild animal loses its life.

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by Madhumay Mallik