Sri Lanka’s Tallest Tusker Receives Treatment After Gunshot Wound

On September 20, wildlife enthusiast Pathum Bandara watched Kavantissa, Sri Lanka’s tallest living tusker, move through the Galgamuwa dry zone, a known human‑elephant conflict area. The next day Bandara noticed the elephant limping and discovered a gunshot wound on Kavantissa’s right foreleg near the knee. The Department of Wildlife Conservation sent a veterinary team; Kavantissa was sedated, the wound cleaned, and he received several rounds of powerful antibiotics. He is now under observation and has begun moving between small forest patches, sometimes crossing human settlements and the Galgamuwa elephant passage. Despite apparent recovery, Kavantissa has become aggressive, chasing villagers and wildlife officers, exposing him to renewed threats such as being fired at. The case follows the earlier loss of Sankha, a young tusker who died after a gunshot injury.