Renowned Kenyan elephant conservationist Daphne Sheldrick has passed away.
According to her family, the 83-year-old lost her battle with cancer on Friday but her legacy will live forever.
"Daphne passed away the evening of the 12th April after a long battle with breast cancer, a battle she finally lost.
"Her legacy is immeasurable and her passing will reverberate far and wide because the difference she has made for conservation in Kenya is unparalleled," wrote her daughter Angela in a statement.
[caption caption="Daphne Sheldrick"]
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The deceased is the founder of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT), the most successful orphan-elephant rescue and rehabilitation program in the world and one of the pioneering conservation organisations for wildlife and habitat protection in East Africa.
DSWT confirmed the sad news on their website but praised her efforts in the conservation of baby elephants.
"It is with sadness that we announce the passing of our Founder, Dame Daphne Sheldrick, yesterday evening after a long battle with breast cancer.
"Her legacy is immeasurable and lives on in the tiny steps of baby elephants for generations to come," read a tweet by DSWT.
Daphne was the first person to successfully hand raise a milk dependent newborn elephant and rhino, knowledge that has seen more than 230 orphaned elephants saved in Kenya, and countless other infant elephants in countries across Africa and into India.
Interestingly, it took her 28 years to develop the special milk formula to bottle-feed baby elephants.
Sheldrick also published several books and was featured in many television programmes and films, including the 2011 documentary Born to be Wild.
In 2006, Queen Elizabeth made her a dame, a feminine form of address for the honour of knighthood in the British honours system, with the masculine form of address being Sir.
[caption caption="File Photo of Daphne Sheldrick"]
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