Story perspectives

California Vineyard Owner Killed by Elephants in Gabon

4/26/2026

Summary

Story summary

Ernie Dosio, a California vineyard owner, was trampled to death by five female forest elephants and a calf in Gabon's Lope-Okanda rainforest.
Collect Africa, the safari operator, said a guide was attacked first and lost his rifle.
Dosio’s hunts were licensed and classified as conservation culls.
His family described him as a well-known hunter and conservationist.
The U.S. Embassy in Gabon is coordinating the repatriation of his remains to California.

History

Historical Context

In March 1973, eighty governments—including the United States, France and Gabon—signed the Washington Convention (CITES), creating a permit system to regulate international trade in endangered wildlife. Though the treaty targets trade rather than habitat loss, it now binds 185 parties worldwide. Today Gabon’s licensed elephant cull reflects CITES’s enduring framework for balancing controlled harvests with conservation concerns.

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Story summary

Ernie Dosio, a California vineyard owner, was trampled to death by five female forest elephants and a calf in Gabon's Lope-Okanda rainforest.
Collect Africa, the safari operator, said a guide was attacked first and lost his rifle.
Dosio’s hunts were licensed and classified as conservation culls.
His family described him as a well-known hunter and conservationist.
The U.S. Embassy in Gabon is coordinating the repatriation of his remains to California.

1 / 2