Wildlife officials are investigating the death of a male elephant whose carcass was discovered in a cultivation well at Kikilige Wewa in the village of Lunupahichchawa, within the Medawachchiya Divisional Secretariat area.
The animal was about seven feet tall and estimated to be around 30 years old, Newswire reported, citing the Sinhala daily Dinamina. Villagers said the elephant had long been suffering from a leg injury and had a habit of entering water bodies to ease its pain.
Residents told reporters they believed the elephant had descended into the agricultural well and was unable to climb out. The body had remained submerged for several days before the stench drew attention. The Medawachchiya Wildlife Office has launched a formal investigation.
The death adds to a punishing toll of wild elephant fatalities this year. Sri Lanka had recorded 128 wild elephant deaths by mid-May, a continuation of the 108 deaths documented earlier in 2026 and one of the most acute manifestations of the country’s human-elephant conflict. The Court of Appeal in March ordered the Department of Wildlife Conservation to step up electric-fence and other mitigation work.
Source: Newswire.
