The Zoological Garden in Poznań has announced it intends to hold a special event to burn the tusks of its 35-year-old elephant Linda.
The 3.5-tonne female died in early February. Medical tests continue to establish the precise cause of Linda's death.
A spokeswoman for the Zoo Małgorzata Chodyła told press agency PAP this would not be the first event of the kind held the Poznań zoo - previously it set up pyres for the surgically removed tusks of elephant Ninio, and the horn of rhino Kiwu, after his death in 2018.
This was accompanied with information programmes on the protection of wild animals, as well as protests against poaching and ivory and rhinoceros horn trafficking.
"Burning the tusks, we want to show that if hunting wild elephants at this tempo continues, then there will be none in Africa within 25 to 30 years. And if anyone thinks we are wasting the tusks while we could sell them, let me remind them that it is a criminal offence, said Małgorzata Chodyła.
She also said that Linda's skull is to be exhibited at a new museum dedicated to the history of Poznań Zoo - complete with 3D-printed copies of the tusks.
Source: PAP