An energy executive and safari hunter said he's received death threats after photos of him with a dead elephant sparked backlash on social media. Mike Jines, a partner with TopGen Energy in Georgia, said his critics are misinterpreting what really happened during a hunt in Zimbabwe, CBS affiliate WGCL-TV reports.

Jines said he and another hunter named Buzz shot two adult elephants in self-defense when they charged them during a hunt in October 2018. "The two elephant that are shown in the photos were shot in self-defense, in an unprovoked charge and both elephants were fully mature cows, not juveniles," he told WGCL in an email.

Jines said he and his company are now dealing with the fallout and making sure people understand the "actual facts as opposed to the mischaracterization of the information on social media."

Get Breaking News Delivered to Your Inbox

Jines said the elephants were killed in a designated safari area and was conducted in compliance with laws and regulations in both Zimbabwe and the U.S. He called the majority of the responses to the images "profane" and "threatening."

"While I can appreciate that hunting can be polarizing and that views on hunting can vary materially, I am sure that you can appreciate what it is like to deal with the vitriol particularly when the underlying information in this case is inaccurate," he said.