Full Breakdown
75-Year-Old Trophy Hunter Killed by Elephant Herd in Gabon
4/24/2026, 11:48:33 PM
Fatal Elephant Encounter
On 17 April 2024, 75-year-old Californian vineyard owner Ernie Dosio was trampled to death after a herd of five female forest elephants, protecting a calf, charged his party in Gabon’s Lope-Okanda rainforest. The professional guide accompanying Dosio was struck first, losing his rifle; Dosio, armed only with a shotgun, was subsequently crushed. The safari operator Collect Africa confirmed the incident.
Dosio’s Hunting Profile and Gabon Context
Dosio founded Pacific AgriLands Inc., which runs a 12,000-acre vineyard in Modesto and supplies equipment to vineyards that produce roughly 40 % of California’s wine. Over decades he collected trophies from African megafauna—elephants, lions, rhinos, buffalo—and U.S. game such as elk and moose. Gabon, where 88 % of its 100,000 sq mi is forest, hosts about 50,000 forest elephants (?60 % of the global forest-elephant population). For the duiker hunt Dosio held a licence to hunt dwarf forest buffalo but was limited to a shotgun; the duiker expedition cost £30,000.
Key Participants
Key participants included hunter Ernie Dosio, his professional guide, the safari operator Collect Africa, the U.S. Embassy in Gabon handling repatriation, and Dosio’s family (partner Betty and sons Jeff and Blake).
Official Statements
Collect Africa confirmed a client was killed on 17 April after the encounter with five elephant cows and a calf. The U.S. Embassy said media comments could take several days; a family spokesperson declined comment. Lodi Lodge secretary Tommy Whitman posted on Facebook, calling Dosio a “pillar in our community.”
Criticism and Opposition
A retired Cape Town game hunter noted that “many disagree with big-game hunting,” yet emphasized that Dosio’s hunts were “strictly licensed and above board” and recorded as conservation culls. The incident has revived debate over the safety and ethics of trophy hunting in protected forests.
Impact and Implications
The death highlights the hazards of hunting large mammals in dense habitats and fuels ongoing controversy about the role of licensed trophy hunting in wildlife management. It also raises questions about regulatory oversight of high-value hunts in regions with dense elephant populations.
Verbatim Quotes
- “A retired game hunter in Cape Town who knows the victim said: 'Ernie has been hunting since he could hold a rifle and has many trophies from Africa and the US.” — Retired game hunter, Cape Town
- “Although many disagree with big game hunting all Ernie's hunts were strictly licensed and above board and were registered as conservation in culling animal numbers.” — Retired game hunter, Cape Town
- “I would rather not go into detail but it is safe to assume it would have been quick.” — Professional guide
- “'What happened has been deeply felt by many each side of the Atlantic.” — Professional guide
Upcoming Developments
Dosio’s remains are being flown to Lodi, California, for burial. Collect Africa and local authorities are reviewing safety protocols for future hunts, while conservation groups call for stricter regulation of trophy hunting in Gabon’s forests.
