A Wyoming hunter is being remembered after being killed earlier this month by a charging elephant. He had been hunting in Africa when the animal charged him on April 17.
He was fatally gored while in Gabon.
Ernie Dosio was a California vineyard owner and frequent Wyoming hunter. His friend Dax McCarty spoke with Cowboy State Daily about his tragic passing. According to McCarty, they had been hunting antelope in the region when the elephants charged them. It's not the first time hunters have encountered dangerous elephants.
But the results were still tragic.
"He grew up shooting does. And eating everything that he shot," McCarty said. "He would pay to have every animal he killed processed. He would take the meat home. And he would either eat the meat or hand it out to families that he knew needed it. He dang sure respected the animals and hunted them with respect."
Wyoming Hunter Remembered
The Wyoming hunter knew the risks of hunting in Africa, according to his friend.
"He (Dosio) knew the risks associated with the animals that live there," McCarty said.
But elephants are their own category of danger.
"They are almost like a combination of grizzlies and bison. They are as aggressive as our grizzlies and as capable of our buffalo. Humans tinkering with them can make them more aggressive," Outdoorsman Guy Eastman told the outlet. "The problem with elephants is, you're not safe even in a vehicle. Same with rhinos. They'll just roll a rig right over, if they can catch it."
Eastman also added, "You can be in the thickest brush and they can move through that brush silently. And, just like a grizzly bear can do, all of the sudden they're right on you."
Sadly, the Wyoming hunter was prepped to take down antelope, not a full-charging elephant. He sadly passed away from his injuries following the attack.
