A bit about Shawu

Shawu was one of the Magnificent Seven of the Kruger National Park.  His tusks are the longest on record in the Kruger National Park and one of the 6th longest to ever come out of Africa.
Shawu was a fairly approachable animal and showed no particular fear or distrust of vehicles. He was a large bull having a shoulder height of 340cm.  In 1981 it was decided to fit Shawu with a collar as poaching was a constant threat from Mozambique, this was successful and he was monitored on a regular basis. Shawu died of old age in the Kostini area east of Shingwedzi, near the northern watershed of the Shawu Valley (Vlei) in October 1982. He had been ill for some time and his condition and movements were monitored daily towards the end of his life by means of a radio transmitter which had been fitted in a collar around his neck. He was close to 60 years old when he died. 

Tusk Data	Left	Right
Length (cm)	317cm	305cm (305.5cm)
Mass (kg)	52.6kg (52.7kg)	50.8kg
Circumference at Lip (cm)	45cm	45cm

We "chose" his name as our Avatar because a mixture of the first 2 syllables of our names (using a pet name a dear friend derived for one of us) produced this . Given our love for wildlife and all things connected, it seemed fitting.