In Zimbabwe, professional hunter Theunis Botha died. When he and a team of other hunters were being chased by a parade of elephants, an elephant cow picked him up by her trunk. She was shot, and she instantly died. However, he also died in the process. His body was crushed under her weight. “The elephant was reportedly shot as she picked him up with her trunk, before she fell and died, crushing Mr Botha,” a BBC article states.
The father’s death was affirmed by his oldest daughter Marike.
While Botha tragically lost his life, his death has just been one in a slew of others. His fellow friend, Scott Van Zyl, also died by animal. The former hunter was found inside a crocodile. “Mr Van Zyl was killed on the banks of the Limpopo river in Zimbabwe in what was the latest in a series of fatal crocodile attacks in the country,” the article continues.
People have been losing their lives, but can men and women really blame the animals? Both men made their living off of their dead bodies, after all. The hunting game has risks, and, unfortunately, death is one of them.
However, Botha, in particular, is still sorely missed. “A Facebook tribute by Zimbabwe-based Kuronda Safaris, which worked with Mr Botha, called him ‘a great man with a fantastic sense of humour,’” the article continues. The man hunted for a living, but he leaves behind five people much more valuable than his legacy: his children. Even though Marike was able to identify her father’s status, she and her siblings declined to talk more about his passing. Hopefully, Botha’s family will just get the peace they need, and maybe Zimbabwe can find solace in revised and restricted hunting laws.
Lately, the country’s been the witness of too many deaths — human and animal.
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