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Poachers have killed one of the world’s largest elephants – a famed great tusker named Satao – in Tsavo East National Park in Kenya.

Wildlife officials revealed that Satao, a giant elephant with tusks that nearly reached the ground, has died after being shot with poisoned arrows in late May.

Conservationists describe how the bull elephant had intentionally hid in bushes to conceal his sweeping tusks, which were estimated to each weigh around 45kg.

Satao’s death at the age of around 45 years is the latest in a massive upsurge of poaching of the mammals for their ivory across the African continent.

Wildlife officials found Satao’s carcass was found with his face hacked off and weighty tusks removed.

Richard Moller, of The Tsavo Trust, who had been monitoring Satao for several months confirmed that the elephant found dead on May 30 was indeed Satao, whom he called "an icon".

"There is no doubt that Satao is dead, killed by an ivory poacher’s poisoned arrow to feed the seemingly insatiable demand for ivory in far-off countries," Mr Moller said.

"A great life lost so that someone far away can have a trinket on their mantelpiece.

"The loss of such an iconic elephant is the most visible and heart-rending tip of this iceberg, this tragedy that is unfolding across the continent," added Frank Pope of Save The Elephants in Nairobi.

A soaring demand for ivory in a number of Asian nations has seen poaching hit levels that were last reached in the 1980s before the ivory trade was banned.

The street value of elephant tusk is believed to exceed thousands of dollars per kilo and officials have acknowledged the role of organised crime in the poaching crisis.

More than 20,000 African elephants were slaughtered in 2013, according to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The Kenya Wildlife Service has documented the killing of 97 elephants so far this year, but experts dispute the official figures.

Dr Paula Kahumbu, who leads the Hands Off Our Elephants campaign, wrote that – based on the reports she has seen – “elephant poaching in Kenya is at least 10 times the official figures”.

Earlier this month, police seized more than 200 elephant tusks in a warehouse in the port city of Mombasa, weighing over 2,000kg.