A big-game hunter from California was killed on April 17 by an elephant after his hunting party stumbled on a small herd of the animals in the dense forests of Gabon in central Africa, according to the Sacramento Safari Club and a former hunting partner.<\/p>\n
The hunter, Ernie Dosio, 75, and two professional hunters were tracking yellow-backed duikers, a species of forest-dwelling antelope, when they were surprised by a group of female elephants with calves, said Dax McCarty, the head of hunting operations at Wagonhound Outfitters in Wyoming, and a close friend of Mr. Dosio. Mr. McCarty said he had received permission from Mr. Dosio\u2019s family to discuss the episode with The New York Times.<\/p>\n
Mr. McCarty said that the hunting party had backed off from the female elephants \u2014 which can be more aggressive<\/a> in the presence of calves \u2014 but that the herd, which was about 150 yards away, charged in an attempt to scare the hunters away.<\/p>\n The animals charged again, getting to within about 25 yards, Mr. McCarty said, and an elephant attacked one of Mr. Dosio\u2019s hunting partners, seriously injuring him.<\/p>\n Another, uninjured hunter grabbed Mr. Dosio and tried to get him to safety behind a tree, but one of the elephants attacked again, fatally goring Mr. Dosio with her tusk, said Mr. McCarty, who was not present during the attack.<\/p>\n Mr. Dosio\u2019s remains are in Gabon awaiting repatriation to the United States, according to Mr. McCarty and the Sacramento Safari Club, where Mr. Dosio was a member. Mr. Dosio lived in Lodi, Calif., about 45 minutes south of Sacramento.<\/p>\n The U.S. Embassy in Gabon did not immediately reply to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Mr. Dosio was the owner of Pacific AgriLands, a farm management company based in Modesto that works with local vineyards.<\/p>\n A representative for the company, where Mr. Dosio\u2019s son, Jeff Dosio, serves as president, declined to comment. Jeff Dosio and his brother, Shane Dosio, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Ernie Dosio was an experienced hunter who sought big-game targets in the United States and abroad. In photos published by Wagonhound and other hunting organizations, he is shown next to the bodies of a male lion<\/a>, an elk<\/a> and a gemsbok, a large antelope native to Africa, among other animals.<\/p>\n Mr. Dosio had employed Collect Africa<\/a>, a safari company based in Coral Gables, Fla., for the hunting trip to Gabon, according to the Sacramento Safari Club.<\/p>\n On its website, Collect Africa advertises itself as \u201cdedicated and committed to assisting you in finding and preparing the best safari possible to achieve your African hunting goals.\u201d<\/p>\n A representative for the company did not immediately reply to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Mr. McCarty said Mr. Dosio had become a regular hunting client of Wagonhound\u2019s over a decade ago, and that they had become close, hunting elk, deer and fowl together. They last hunted together in November, when they tracked white-tailed deer in Wyoming.<\/p>\n Mr. Dosio was very generous and charitable, and heavily involved in the local community, Mr. McCarty said. He was a \u201cmodest guy who worked his tail off to earn what he had,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Mr. Dosio, a longtime Elks member, received a tribute this week from Tommy Whitman, the secretary of Lodi Lodge 1900.<\/p>\n \u201cMay all of our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and loved ones,\u201d he said on Facebook<\/a> on Thursday. Mr. Dosio had held the rank of \u201cgreat Elk\u201d and had been a \u201cpillar in our Community,\u201d Mr. Whitman said.<\/p>\n Gabon, one of the world\u2019s most densely forested countries, is a stronghold for the African forest elephant, which is critically endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature\u2019s Red List of Threatened Species<\/a>.<\/p>\n