A bacterium, the cause of the death of hundreds of elephants in Botswana

• Science: Hundreds of elephants are found dead in Botswana without an apparent cause

A cyanobacterium was the cause of the mysterious death of some

that set off alarms in Botswana in the middle of this year, according to the government.

The cause of the death of the pachyderms was determined after

commissioned by the Executive of the southern African nation, famous for hosting the largest colony of elephants in the world.

Cyanobacteria are a type of bacteria that have

.

They appear in the water and are capable of producing toxins that poison terrestrial and marine fauna, including disorders for humans.

The number of elephants killed by cyanobacteria

, according to

, deputy director of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks of Botswana, in a televised press conference.

Despite the clarification of the cause of the massive and sudden deaths, which had alarmed both the Botswana government and the conservationists,

.

Why did it only affect elephants?

"We still have many questions to answer, including

, why in the area involved and what could trigger all these changes that we have seen in the area. We have several hypotheses that we are investigating." said Mmadi Reuben, chief veterinarian of the Department, at the press conference.

This expert also indicated that it has been proven that the deaths ended

in the affected region

, around the town of Seronga (north).

"From now on we are going to monitor the situation and devise procedures to avoid more deaths in the next season," Reuben said.

The alarms about the death of the Botswana elephants went off in early May, when the carcasses of several elephants were located in the nearby

area

and experts could not guess a cause of death with the naked eye.

Subsequent investigations led to the discovery of around 300 dead pachyderms in similar conditions, with signs of

.

No other species was affected, not even scavengers that could have fed on the deceased elephants such as hyenas or vultures.

"It is very, very strange, especially that they are only elephants,"

explained then to Niall McCann, director of conservation of the British

, one of the organizations that investigated the problem.

Covid complicates investigations

The event also occurred in the middle of the

pandemic

, a factor that complicated the investigations due to the movement restrictions imposed to combat the expansion of the

.

The pandemic also delayed the completion of scientific tests, as Botswana had to send samples to laboratories in other countries.

Botswana, with a colony of around

, is the country in the world with the most elephants.

Of these, 10% are in the area affected by this outbreak, the Okavango Delta, well known internationally for its luxury safari tourism.

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