We think that the poacher did it with some kind of home-made trap, probably big hooks tied onto the end of a rope and wrapped in meat. The crocodile swallowed the bait, hooks and all, and the killer either waited for it to die or pulled it straight in.

Either way, by the time the Big Life intelligence unit heard about it, it was sadly too late for the animal. The poacher was trying to sell the skin, and Big Life informers were some of the first to hear. What followed was a text-book undercover operation, and a joint ranger team from Kenya Wildlife Service and The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust finished it off with a successful arrest.

This is yet another result of great work by the Big Life intelligence team, and the effectiveness of an ongoing training program supported by Chester Zoo, the Kenya Association of Private Land Rhino Sanctuaries (APLRS), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.