Pregnancy-related complications probable reason for female elephant’s death near Coimbatore

Female elephant in Coimbatore died of pregnancy-related complications, post-mortem reveals. Foetus was in final stage of gestation, likely died before mother. Veterinarians believe dystocia caused foetus' death, leading to mother's. 16 wild elephants have died in Coimbatore Forest Division this year.

A female wild elephant that was found dead in a check-dam inside a reserve forest near Coimbatore on Sunday (September 17) evening could have died of pregnancy-related complications, as per the post-mortem examination findings.

Forest Veterinary Officer A. Sukumar, who headed the autopsy on Monday, said the foetus of the elephant could have been between 20 and 22 months of gestation.

“The foetus was more putrefied than the mother’s carcass. This could mean that the foetus died much before the mother died. The pregnancy complication is believed to have led to the mother’s death,” he said.

The female elephant, aged between 22 to 25, was found dead in the check-dam of Kinathukuzhi stream falling under Boluvampatti block II reserve forest when field staff of the Forest Department were patrolling the area on Sunday evening.

Dr. Sukumar performed the post-mortem examination along with T. Karthikeyan, Assistant Veterinary Surgeon from the Government Veterinary Hospital, Narasipuram, in the presence of senior officials and a representative from a non-governmental organisation on Monday. The elephant did not have external injuries.

According to the veterinarians, the foetus was in the final stage of pregnancy. “The foetus was found in the full grown stage with hairs. The amniotic sac was not ruptured. The elephant is believed to have undergone a dystocia (difficulty during labour) due to which the foetus could have died. This could have eventually caused the mother’s death,” Dr. Sukumar said.

He added that an elephant’s gestation period is between 18 and 22 months, the longest of all mammals. The carcass and the foetus were buried in the forest after samples were lifted for forensic examinations.