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Kenya Wildlife Service suspects cyanide in tomato pesticide to be the cause
BBC • • world
Key Points:
- Fifteen elephants were found dead near Amboseli National Park in southern Kenya, suspected to have been poisoned by pesticide-sprayed tomatoes from nearby farms.
- Preliminary tests by the Kenya Wildlife Service detected cyanide in samples from the elephant carcasses, with ten showing paralysis before dying and five found already dead.
- Wildlife officials have ruled out foul play so far and assured the public that the toxins do not pose an immediate risk to humans.
- The incident has raised concerns about the impact of expanding farming near the park, as elephants often stray onto farmland seeking food and water.
- This marks the first large-scale elephant mortality in decades in the Amboseli ecosystem, which had successfully reduced poaching, and the deaths spanned a month from June 24 to July 24, 2026.
