Ernie Dosio, a 75-year-old California vineyard tycoon and prominent big-game hunter, has been trampled to death by a herd of elephants in the rainforests of Gabon after his group stumbled upon five female forest elephants and a calf during a guided hunting expedition – in what fellow hunters are describing as a devastating loss, and which has renewed the broader debate about trophy hunting in some of Africa’s most sensitive ecosystems.
Dosio was out shooting yellow-backed duiker, a species of antelope, in Gabon when he and his guide surprised five female elephants with a calf in the Lope-Okanda rainforest last Friday. The animals charged immediately. His guide was seriously injured, losing his gun, before Dosio was trampled to death. The US Embassy in Gabon is now coordinating the repatriation of Dosio’s remains to California.
Cape Town-based safari operator Collect Africa, which confirmed Dosio’s death, said the professional hunter guiding the expedition was left severely injured in the attack.
Who was Ernie Dosio?
Dosio, from Lodi, California, had previously amassed a huge haul of trophies, from elephants to lions, and was a well-known figure at the Sacramento Safari Club.
Dosio led Pacific AgriLands Inc., a Modesto-based company managing thousands of acres of vineyards and supplying harvesting equipment across California’s Central Valley. A member of the Sacramento Safari Club, Dosio amassed a large collection of trophies over the years, including elephants, lions, and other big game. He also hunted extensively in the US, with mounted specimens ranging from elk and moose to reindeer, as well as wildfowl like turkeys and geese.
He is survived by his partner, Betty, and two children.
Dosio lived with his partner in their four-bedroom home and was a Great Elk in the California Central District Elks, a patriotic organisation that supports various causes, including veterans’ groups. Tommy Whitman, secretary of Lodi Lodge 1900, said in a statement: “It is with a most heavy heart and sadness that I am reporting the passing of Ernie Dosio. May all of our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and loved ones. Ernie was Great Elk for 30 years and a pillar in our community who will be sorely missed.”
What happened in Gabon
Dosio was taking part in a $40,000 hunt in the Lope-Okanda rainforest for small forest antelope. Due to strict licensing laws, he could not bring his own guns and was armed with only a shotgun supplied by the hunting company.
A fellow hunter who knew Dosio explained the circumstances: “Ernie had booked a hunt for dwarf forest buffalo and duikers – in particular, the yellow-backed duiker. The hunting company would supply a shotgun and cartridges for the duiker hunt. Whilst in the forest, Ernie and his professional hunter surprised five forest elephant cows with a calf. Feeling under threat, the elephants immediately attacked them.”
The attack unfolded suddenly in dense undergrowth where visibility is notoriously limited. Elephants are widely known for their fierce maternal protectiveness. When the group’s sudden presence startled the herd, the animals responded with an immediate charge. There was little time to react.
The fellow hunter, speaking from Cape Town, described what would have followed: “I would rather not go into detail, but it is safe to assume it would have been quick. Ernie was a very well-known and popular hunter in the US and in Africa, and a very keen conservationist, and he did a hell of a lot of charity work and was a really good guy. What happened has been deeply felt by many on both sides of the Atlantic.”
Gabon – Africa’s last Eden
Gabon, on Central Africa’s Atlantic coast, is often described as “Africa’s last Eden,” with about 88% of its 100,000 square miles covered in forest. The country is home to roughly 60% of the world’s remaining forest elephants – an estimated 100,000 animals.
Gabon’s dense forests are home to around 95,000 highly-endangered forest elephants, according to the WWF, which make up around 60% of the world’s remaining population. The forest elephant is a distinct species from the more commonly known African savanna elephant – smaller, with straighter, downward-pointing tusks adapted for navigating dense jungle undergrowth, and considered critically endangered on the IUCN Red List.
The Lope-Okanda forest where Dosio died is part of a national park that has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2007, recognised for its exceptional ecological value and the survival of large mammal species that have disappeared from most of the continent.
The hunting and conservation debate
The fellow hunter’s defence of Dosio’s record reflected the standard argument made by proponents of licensed big-game hunting. “Although many disagree with big game hunting, all of Ernie’s hunts were strictly licensed and above board and were registered as conservation culls to manage animal numbers,” he said.
Proponents argue that licensed, carefully regulated trophy hunting generates income for local conservation programmes and communities, and that controlled culling can form part of wildlife management. Critics counter that it accelerates the decline of vulnerable species, that the conservation benefits are largely overstated, and that wealthier alternatives such as photographic tourism generate more revenue with less damage.
Dosio’s death has renewed debate over the safety and ethics of guided trophy hunts in dense rainforest terrain, where thick vegetation can hide both game and large, easily startled animals. While such trips are marketed as controlled and highly managed, Dosio’s death is being cited as an example of how rapidly conditions can become lethal.
Images from Dosio’s social media, circulated widely following his death, show a long career of big-game hunting dating back to at least 2014, with trophies from multiple African countries as well as North America. Public reaction online has been sharply divided – expressions of sympathy for his family alongside pointed observations about the circumstances of a veteran trophy hunter’s death.
The Gabonese authorities have not confirmed the precise legal status of all activities in the area where the incident occurred. Collect Africa, the safari operator involved, said it was cooperating with authorities.
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