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Wild tusker · Yala

Maha Poottuwa

මහ පූට්ටුවා மஹ பூட்டுவா

Maha Poottuwa
Sumudusoyza007 · CC BY-SA 4.0
A photo of a Sri Lankan Elephant — not this animal

Maha Poottuwa (‘the big crossed one’) was a cross-tusked bull of Yala Block I; his right tusk crossed over his left. He first appeared in the late 1950s and was known for charging vehicles, but calmed down over the years and became the most photographed tusker in the park. He was last seen in the early 1990s in poor condition.

Sources

  1. Sri Lanka Nature: Ruhunu National Park — Dr. H. I. E. Katugaha, Infolanka
  2. Meet the famous tuskers of Sri Lanka — Hesandi Ravisinghe, Harbingers' Magazine
  3. Kublai Khan – The end of a majestic trail — The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka), 30 Aug 2009