Save the Elephants News Service

Farmers call for electric shock treatment for elephants

Sun, 17 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

MCOT
April 17, 2005

PRACHUAB KHIRI KHAN, Apr 17, (TNA) � Local officials in Prachuab Khiri Khan today made a desperate appeal to the government, urging them to permit the construction of low-voltage electric fences to prevent herds of elephants from encroaching on local pineapple fields.

In a continuation of the long-running battle between man and beast in Kuiburi district, Mr. Chaliew Jermwongrattanachai, a member of the Hat Kham tambon administrative organization, told reporters that around 130 elephants living in the Kuiburi National Park were now regularly coming out of the jungle to eat the villagers� pineapples.

Made desperate by the current drought, the herd is said to be forming break-away factions, which then take over waterholes and refuse access to smaller groups.

According to Mr. Chaliew, local residents are now forced to watch over their fields 24 hours a day, but the elephants are so used to the traditional methods of getting rid of them, including the use of torches and firecrackers, that they simply carry on munching.

Mr. Chaliew called on the government and elephant charities to address the problem on a sustainable basis, urging the government to revive plans to construct low-voltage electric fences to help protect the pineapple fields.

Elephant population shoots up in Assam

Fri, 15 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Webindia123

Kaziranga (Assam), April 15 : At a time when the elephant-human conflict is on the rise, the animal's population at a wildlife sanctuary in Assam has shown a massive increase, bringing cheer to conservationists.

An elephant census at the 430-sq km Kaziranga National Park has revealed an increase in numbers -- 1,206 wild Asiatic elephants have been spotted as against 1,048 in the last count held in 2002.

This is in sharp contrast to the dwindling number of tigers in sanctuaries in the country.

"The latest census has shown an increase in the elephant population by 158, and this in itself is very heartening," Kaziranga warden M.K. Vasu told IANS.

Some 150 expert forest rangers and 'mahouts' spread over 50 teams took part in the week-long census at the park that concluded this week.

"The rise in the elephant population is primarily because of better conversation efforts and a team of dedicated forest rangers and guards who patrol the park round the clock," said senior park ranger Utpal Bora.

"Moreover, the habitat in Kaziranga is still very conducive for elephants unlike in traditional elephant reserves where human encroachment is leading to conflict."

There are an estimated 5,500 wild elephants in Assam, out of India's total pachyderm population of about 10,000.

The population rise in Kaziranga assumes significance as the animal has been coming into increasing conflict with humans in recent years in the state.

> From 1990 to 2003, the hostilities claimed the lives of 586 people and 255

elephants.

In the last four years, angry villagers have killed up to 120 elephants - many done to death by poisoned-tipped arrows or food laced with toxic chemicals.

Elephants in Assam are squeezed for living space, stressed by development, and growing increasingly violent.

Satellite imagery showed that people cleared as many as 45,850 hectares of thick forests between 1996 and 2000, leading to the break-up of traditional elephant corridors and their habitat.

"There has been fragmentation in the elephant habitat due to human settlements. We are trying to improve the situation by evicting illegal encroachers," said Assam Forest Minister Pradyut Bordoloi.

The state has created buffer zones to tackle the menace. An area on the periphery of villages is cultivated with plants found palatable by the elephants. The second layer has plants like mustard that elephants shun.

"The Kaziranga census could be good news for conservationists, but we need to be more alert and not rest on our laurels," said elephant expert Kushal Konwar Sharma.

Rogue elephants prompts warning from embassy

Fri, 15 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Independent Online
April 15 2005

Kigali - The aggressive behaviour of a rogue elephant in a Rwandan wildlife preserve has prompted an unusual warning from the United States embassy in Kigali, normally more concerned with threats posed by humans.

The embassy said visitors to Lake Ihema in northern Rwanda's Akagera Game Park should take extra security precautions because of the rogue beast that was becoming increasingly violent.

"Recently, this elephant has displayed more aggressive behaviour towards visitors to the point that actual charging and physical contact with vehicles has occurred," it said in a notice to US citizens in Rwanda released on Thursday.

"No injuries have been reported, but as recently as last week this elephant severely damaged an occupied vehicle," said the notice, a copy of which was seen by reporters on Friday.

"The embassy has notified the Rwandan Office of Tourism and National Parks and expressed our concerns about these incidents," it said.

"Americans are advised to exercise extra caution when visiting the park."

The danger is highest at a fishing village on the western shore of the lake that the elephant has been known to frequent for many years, the embassy said in the so-called "warden notice".

Such notices are released by US embassies and consulates around the world to alert Americans in those jurisdictions to potential security threats, usually related to suspected terrorist plots, unrest or civil disturbances.

The raging bulls of Khao Yai

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Bangkok Post

It is these 19, teenage bulls that are the focus of this article. The researchers' observations show that they are currently forging out their personal home ranges _ each bull will need an area of about 120 square kilometres and herein lies the first issue. Is Khao Yai big enough for all of these boys?

If each of the 23 identified bulls requires an area of 120 square kilometres, they will need a total area of 2,760 square kilometres. Khao Yai is only 2,168 square kilometres. And don't forget the bulls that have not been identified yet!

The second main issue is that the 19 teenage bulls have yet to reach full maturity. This means that they will grow in size, their tusks will grow longer (already most are at least 30 centimetres in length) and they will start to go into musth.

Musth is the period when male elephants are most ready to mate and their behaviour is, from a human's point of view, unpredictably aggressive. So far the researchers have only seen the three oldest males in musth, the most obvious indicator being a secretion from their temporal glands. These males go into musth two or three times per year, and mostly between September and April.

The study team is concerned that as the young bulls create their own home ranges and develop into full maturity there will an increasing risk of conflict with both tourists and the communities around Khao Yai.

Already we there has been someevidence that the bull elephants _ both the teenagers and the matured ones _ are using these tourist areas and the roadside resources more frequently, both during the day and at night. Whilst this is a great opportunity for tourists to see these amazing animals, it is worried that problems may occur _ the elephants may damage or destroy tourist property and the opportunity for accidents between elephants and tourist vehicles could increase.

This is definitely an issue that needs close observation and the more information the researchers can find out about the habitat requirements and behaviour of the bull elephants of Khao Yai, the better.

Also, worried that the incidents of crop raiding in the farmland around Khao Yai will increase, the study team is working with park officials and local communities to monitor these incidents and to encourage farmers to understand the elephants' point of view, as well as working with them to find solutions to the problem of crop raiding.

An elephant management plan for Khao Yai is needed, including the concept of limiting tourist numbers or at least reducing the number of vehicles going through the park. This is especially relevant in the cool season as this is when elephants are most often seen on the road.

The National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department's plan to create a wildlife corridor between Khao Yai and nearby protected areas _ namely Thap Lan, Pang Sida, Ta Praya and Phra Phutthachai national parks and Dongyai Wildlife Sanctuary.

It will allow the elephants and other wildlife more space for foraging.

Namibia Prepares to Sell Omakipa

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

By Lindsay Dentlinger, The Namibian (Windhoek)

NAMIBIA is not giving up on its hope of trading in ivory as a means to gain from its natural resources.

Last year Namibia lost a Cites bid to trade in ivory, amidst fierce lobbying from Kenya and international conservation groups who fear that it would open the door to poaching and illegal trade.

The Director of Scientific Services in the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Pauline Lindeque, told the Wildlife Society last week that Namibia only intended to sell raw ivory from elephants that had died of natural causes.

She said the move would definitely not lead to increased hunting for the purpose of obtaining the ivory.

Depending on the quality, Namibia could earn a minimum of U$100 for a kilogramme of raw ivory at current market prices.

Lindeque said Namibia and its neighbours who were in support of selling their ivory would face a tough time in getting permission, because the continent was expected to come up with a collective view on the matter.

At the last Cites meeting in Thailand in October, Namibia did, however, succeed in its bid to trade in elephant products made of hide or hair for private use only.

Lindeque said Government was now preparing procedures for the sale and export of omakipa - traditional ivory trinkets, often worked into jewellery.

She said Government wanted to be very sure that all measures on its export were firmly in place before giving the go-ahead.

Lindeque said Namibia had to be very careful that the conditions were not exploited and that the product did not find itself in markets for resale out of the country.

Government intends to include in its regulations that each item sold must be accompanied by a certificate.

The Ministry is compiling booklets and other information material outlining the conditions of ekipa sales.

Lindeque said Government expected a huge demand, especially from tourists, for the product.

Namibia has a stockpile of around 10 tons of ivory, and although it is permitted to sell it, the conditions are too stringent to make this possible at present.

It would have to be sold as one consignment to a country for natural use and not for re-export.

Namibia sold around 13 tons of ivory to Japan in 1999.

Members of the Wildlife Society were also curious to know about the status of elephants in Namibia at present.

Lindeque told the group that Namibia's carrying capacity for elephant was taking strain and she said it was important that elephant be allowed to migrate unhindered.

A sub-regional meeting is scheduled for the end of May to discuss the migratory routes.

Lindeque said if the range of elephants could be expanded through conservancies, Namibia would be able to carry more animals.

Shesaid if they were not able to move freely, it could affect the biodiversity in areas where they are confined.

There are about 15 000 elephants in Namibia - mostly in the northwestern and northeastern areas of the country.

Namibia's elephant population has increased at a rate of around four per cent a year since 1980.

Namibia's carrying capacity for elephant is around 20 000.

Botswana, from which many elephants pass through Namibia each year en route to Angola, has an elephant population as high as 120 000.

Police raid in Addis Ababa yields ivory stash

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

By Anthony Mitchell, Independent Online

Addis Ababa - Ethiopian authorities have seized more than 500kg of illegal ivory, stuffed animals and ostrich eggs that were destined for collectors abroad, a police officer said on Thursday.

Police raided more than 66 shops in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, where they found the illegal wildlife products in January, but had only just finished assessing and cataloguing them, Inspector Tesfaye Eshete said.

All the shop owners were arrested and then released on bail. They face a $550 fine and two years in jail.

"This is one of the largest raids we have ever conducted," said Mohammed Abdi, a senior expert with Ethiopia's Wildlife and Conservation Authority.

Tesfaye said he was amazed by the size of the haul, saying it was equivalent to a decade of seizures at Ethiopia's international airport.

"In the past we have had little information about which items were legal or illegal so it has meant traders operated with impunity," Tesfaye said.

The illegal wildlife products were worth around $150,000 on the streets of Addis Ababa, but at least five times that much abroad, he said.

Poachers have taken a terrible toll on Ethiopia's wildlife, decimating the elephant population to 800 from 10 000 more than 20 years ago, Mohammed said.

"These are the jewels of our country and unless we stop poaching we will lose them forever," he said.

"Only by stamping out this trade will we protect them."

Most of the ivory is intricately carved in backstreet shops in Addis Ababa's bustling Merkato market, one of the largest market in Africa. It is usually smuggled out of the country to the United States, Germany, France and Britain, said Mohammed.

"We estimate there is still ten times that much out there in shops waiting for people to buy it," Mohammed said.

He also said that the recent raid is the first of many and one he hopes will prove Ethiopia's commitment to wiping out the trade in illegal wildlife products in the country. - Sapa-AP

Rogue bull elephant spared from death

Wed, 13 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Zarina Abdullah, New Straits Times

KUALA TERENGGANU, Wed:
A TWO-TONNE rogue bull elephant was spared the death sentence after it was shot with a tranquiliser instead of bullets by the rangers from State Wildlife and National Park (Perhilitan).

Archive Since 1991 Villagers found the animal, believed to have strayed from a small herd, foraging in a durian orchard at Kampung Baung in Hulu Terengganu on Sunday. They then alerted the department.

State Perhilitan director Rozidan Md Yasin said the elephant was spotted several times in Kampung Baung and nearby Kampung Payang Kayu a week ago.

The elephant, believed to be 10 years old, would be re-located to the Terengganu-side of the National Park on Thursday.

Maputo Special Reserve to Double in Size

Tue, 12 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique (Maputo)

The Maputo Special Reserve (REM - sometimes known as the Maputo Elephant Reserve) is set to double its area from the current 800 to 1,600 square kilometres in the next two years.

The head of the Parks and Reserves Department of the Mozambican Tourism Ministry, Julieta Lichuge, told AIM that this move is to allow the free circulation of animals within the park.

The Mozambican authorities are trying to overcome conflict between local farmers and wildlife (particularly elephants) by fencing off the Futi Corridor, a migratory route between Mozambique and South Africa used by elephants.

This has proved controversial, in that rural communities complain that the government is denying them access to the natural resources they need. However, the plan involves a fence which animals cannot cross, but with gates that people can use to enter the forests.

According to Lichuge, increasing the area of the reserve is aimed at creating a cross border conservation area that includes some areas in Mozambique, South Africa, and Swaziland, as a means to facilitate the management of habitats in the region of the Libombos mountains.

"Currently, the elephant population is spread across the two countries (Mozambique and South Africa), and the management commission has been facing some difficulties in controlling the movements of these animals", she said.

Campaign Intensifies Against Trade In Ivory

Tue, 1 Mar 2005 00:00:00 -0700

By Peter Ngomba Efande, Cameroon Tribune

Keepers of undeclared ivory products will henceforth be fished out and judged accordingly.

A massive public awareness campaign has begun in the country for control of illicit trade in ivory or elephant tusk under the auspices of the Ministry of Forestry and Widlife. Supported by the Last Great Ape Organisations (LAGA), the Ministry of Justice and the Forces of Law and Order, the campaign is a follow-up of recommendations made during the 2003 13th Bangkok meeting of the Conference on Parties (COP) to the convention on International Trade in Endangered species (CITIES).

Anyone keeping ivory products will henceforth be required to show proof of authorization. The director of wildlife and protected areas, Takang Ebai Stephen, cautions that the law will not spare anyone found with undeclared ivory products. Following this campaign , anybody keeping ivory products in any form must declare in the nearest service in charge of wildlife the origin of the products and obtain a certificate.

Top on the agenda of the Bangkok conference at which Cameroon actively participated was the issues of increasing control over international market for ivory trade. The conference thus resolved that international trade in member countries will be intensified and strengthened.

Reports say the government of Cameroon will very soon proceed to intensify massive seizure and prosecution of allactors in illicit trade, be it at the production, marketing or consumption of ivory products. According to the director of wildlife and protected areas, the wildlife law enforcement official will soon, be "moving from house to house, hotel to hotel and airport to airport to carry out seizures. He said, his department will not spare anyone who possesses these products and has not made any declaration anywhere. In addition to seizure, those in possession of undeclared ivory products will be prosecuted .

Cameroon's wildlife law and its enabling Act of 1995 is sufficiently severe on dealers in ivory products and other products obtained from totally protected wildlife species such as gorillas, chimpanzees and drills with imprisonment sentences running up to 3 years and/or a fine of up to CFA 10 million. It should be noted that Cameroon ratified this convention since 1981.

Waking up to elephant menace

Tue, 1 Mar 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Amit Gupta, The Telegraph

In the recent past, Jharkhand and several other eastern states � including Orissa, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal � have recorded a large number of elephant intrusions in villages. With elephant-related deaths and crop destruction rising, wildlife experts from affected states are working on a project which would involve radio-collaring wild elephants to help detect their precise movement.

�Until now, the idea was restricted to research. The state government now intends to introduce a satellite-based radio-collaring system � where one or two members of a herd will be collared and tracked via satellite � thus enabling us to keep track of the entire herd,� said a senior official of the Jharhand forest department. Once implemented, the system will help officials restrict their movement to within the forest limits.

In a workshop � jointly organised by the Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and Union environment and forests ministry � a team of experts and forest officials from affected states emphasised that the need of the hour is to minimise human-elephant conflict rather than simply conserve the species.

Paritosh Upadhyaya, Seraikela divisional forest officer (DFO), who had participated in the all-important workshop asserted that the number of elephants in our country was not dwindling and �habitation�, rather than �conservation�, was the only way to check the marauding elephants.

�We have around 28,000 elephants in the country in natural habitats like forest divisions and wildlife sanctuaries. Jharkhnad houses about three per cent of this number,� he said .

The many afforestation projects notwithstanding, there are still many barren patches in forest areas of Jharkhand which are inhabited by human beings. In want of food, elephants often step into the human territories.

The state forest department�s ambitious plan to establish an �elephant corridor� through Dumka � Chatra � Hazaribagh - Koderma forest divisions and six forest divisions in three districts of Singhbhum - Kolhan would be a step towards restricting the movement of elephant herds outside the core forest areas.

The department also intends to undertake electric-fencing project with a Bangalore-based wildlife habitation company for the formation of elephant corridors. �There is also a need for an intensive afforestation drive in the corridor area. We should plant grass and bamboo species, the staple food for elephants,� Upadhyaya added.

With heated allegations levelled by some states against others � for instance, representatives from Chhatisgarh said their state does not have a single elephant and intruders from Jharkhand were destroying their crops killing their people � an inter-state co-ordination committee was constituted at the workshop to monitor elephant attacks around the corridor project.

The committee decided toincrease the compensation for the families of victims of elephant attacks. Similarly, compensation for crops destroyed by elephants around the fringes of the elephant corridor was also raised.

With such comprehensive projects in the pipeline, forest officials and wildlife experts hope that they will effectively reduce the number of elephant intrusions without causing any harm to the species.

Accused ivory smuggler surrenders to police in Vietnam

Mon, 28 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Deutsche Presse-Agentur

A man accused in Vietnam's largest ever ivory smuggling case has given himself up, police said Monday.

A container holding 730 kilograms of elephant tusks was seized by police from a storeroom at the Duc Minh import export company in Hanoi last December. Nguyen Van Thinh, the company's director fled immediately after the raid.

He showed up at our office Saturday afternoon with a tired look, said Pham Van Tam, deputy head of the investigative police office for social crimes of the Ministry for Public Security in Hanoi.

Thinh had been hiding in the northern province of Bac Giang, police said.

Thinh has told police that last September his company was paid 2,000 dollars by a Chinese man to import the container which was declared to contain dried fish from Africa for exporting to China, the local police newspaper reported today.

Thinh is being held in police detention for further investigation.

Police also arrested six people on Saturday for smuggling 35 of pangolins to Hanoi, an officer from the Hanoi police said Monday.

The pangolins were transported in a sedan from Laos, the policeman said.

Captured elephants appear 'stressed'

Sun, 27 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

New Straits Times

PADANG TERAP, Sat. - The two wild female elephants captured in Naka recently appeared "stressed" and malnourished.

The Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) elephant unit head Nasharuddin Othman said the condition may be the result of living too close to humans and the heat wave, which caused their water holes in the jungle to dry up.

He said the gradual loss of natural habitat and dwindling food supply forced the animals to forage for food at estates and villages.

The female elephant was separated from its two-year-old calf when it was captured on Tuesday.

It was today taken out of the Chebar Forest Reserve in an operation assisted by the unit's two trained gajah denak or elephant guides - Che Mek and Mek Bunga.

The department plans to relocate a herd of between six and eight elephants to the Belum Forest Reserve in Perak.

They were responsible for causing thousands of ringgit worth of damage to commercial crops in several villages here since June.

Nasharuddin said the elephant, which is the leader of the herd, looked malnourished and had an old wound on the left foot.

"Just like humans, elephants suffer from the loss of personal space. But once it reaches its new home, there won't be so many problems," said Nasharuddin, who also heads the Kuala Gandah Elephant Conservation Centre in Pahang.

Jeli records most complaints of damages by elephants

Sun, 27 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Sharifah Mahsinah Syed Abdullah, New Straits Times

KOTA BARU, Sun:
THE Jeli district recorded the highest number of complaints on damages made by elephants with 185 cases over the past three years.

Kelantan Wildlife Department director Pazil Abdul Patah said in the same period, villagers from the other districts including Gua Musang, Kuala Krai and Tanah Merah filed 325 reports.

He said the department managed to capture four elephants in Gua Musang from 2002 to 2004 while the latest was captured in Kampung Legeh, Jeli early this month.

"The male elephant aged about seven years was captured on Feb.18 and transferred to the National Park via Tasik Kenyir,� he said.

Kenya under fire over Thai sales

Sun, 27 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

By Meera Selva, Independent Online

In an international row between conservationists and politicians, Kenya has been asked to abandon plans to export hundreds of its wild animals to a safari park in Thailand.

Conservation groups around the world say one of the leading animal tourism destinations cannot afford to give away its already diminishing stock of wildlife.

Kenyan government officials say the deal simply allows Kenya to get rid of some of its overpopulated species.

Thailand wants to import 300 animals - including white rhino, lions, leopards, warthogs and cheetahs - for its Chiang Mai Night Zoo. In return, the Thai government has offered to send elephant handlers to Kenya.

Thailand's track record in animal care is not reassuring. More than 100 tigers were killed or died at the privately owned Sri-Racha tiger zoo in Thailand last year after they were fed chickens contaminated with bird flu, and there are concerns the Kenyan animals could catch a similar illness.

The groups also say Thailand's elephant handlers use unnecessarily cruel techniques, that cannot be used on fiercer African elephants. Kenya sent wildlife experts to Thailand in early January to inspect the conditions for the animals and agreed to send them, in return for a booth in the zoo promoting tourism in Kenya.

The zoo is expected to have 1 700 animals from Thailand and 40 from Australia as well as the ones from Kenya. The government claims it wants to use the animals for research and to attract tourists.

But Franklin Omondi of Youth for Conservation said Thailand's claims that it wanted the animals for research did not make sense.

"It would be cheaper and make more sense to conduct the research in the animals' natural habitat than to capture, cage and transport them long-distance to an artificial environment in Thailand."

Other international conservation groups have asked Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki to stop the exports, which they say will damage Kenya's reputation as an animal-friendly tourist destination.

The Pan-African Sanctuaries Alliance, which runs animals refuges around the world, said it would reconsider plans to hold its 2005 workshop in Kenya if the animals are exported.

In a letter to the Kenyan Wildlife Service and the Ministry of Tourism, it said the deal "appears to display absolutely no understanding or knowledge of the current wildlife situation in Kenya, East Africa or Africa".

Safaricom And Save The Elephants Win Mobility in the Environment Award

Thu, 24 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Paul Geary, Environmental News Network

Save the Elephants (STE) Trust today announced it is the co-recipient, with Safaricom, of the 2005 GSM Association "Mobility in the Environment Award." According to Safaricom, the award was for its program to apply GSM mobile technology to monitor wild animals to help secure their future.

"We are very proud and excited to win this award by our peers representing the worldwide GSM community and the recognition of our contribution to wildlife conservation," said Michael Joseph, CEO of Safaricom.

"Our program in support of the Save the Elephants GSM Animal Tracking Project demonstrates the far-reaching capabilities of GSM technology to transform and improve our world. We look forward to our continued relationship with Save the Elephants to assist in providing a peaceful co-existence between people and our native Kenyan wildlife."

Iain Douglas-Hamilton, Founder of Save the Elephants, a partner of the US-based Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), said, "Save the Elephants GSM Animal Tracking Project supported by Safaricom goes a long way in our goal to secure a future for elephants and other wild animals by understanding movement patterns. In our Northern Kenya conservation area elephants share the land with people and we need to manage the relationship between communities and wildlife in Kenya to provide the elephants with the freedom of movement critical to their well being. To achieve peaceful co existence, we must understand the behavior of animals. Technology is making that possible."

The annual award recognizes organizations and individuals for contributions to promote wireless products, services and initiatives based on the GSM wireless standard. It was announced during the recently held GSM World Congress in Cannes, France.

Safaricom, under its Safaricom Foundation, with input from the Vodafone Foundation, supports Save the Elephants to deploy GSM and GPS-enabled collars so rangers and the conservation group can track herd movement, which is challenging since elephants graze across thousands of square miles - from wild savannah to farmland.

Information received from the collars helps to define key elephant migratory corridors that need to remain open, providing the animals with freedom of movement. The information also helps STE monitor poaching and to advise on policy for animal reintroduction.

Safaricom Limited is a leading Mobile Telephone Operator in Kenya. Formed in 1997, it is a joint-venture between Telkom Kenya (60%) and Vodafone UK (40%).

For more info and photos on the below story, please check out the Save the Elephants web site at
http://www.savetheelephants.org/GSM Awards Press Release.htm

Two elephants in historic vasectomy operation

Fri, 11 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

SABC News

A vasectomy has been performed on two elephants at the Mabalingwe nature reserve outside Bela-Bela in the Limpopo province. The operation performed by a team of local and international veterinarians is the first of its kind in the world.

It is hoped that the operation will help solve the problem of the overpopulated elephant family. The first operation succeeded without any complications and the young bull headed for its breeding herd. Its mate died of undetermined complications during the second operation.

Elephant populations in many African countries have recovered well from poaching and are now causing concerns about environmental degradation that large populations of elephants cause.

NORTH BENGAL WILD ELEPHANT CENSUS IN APRIL

Wed, 9 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

The Statesman

Statesman News Service COOCH BEHAR, Feb. 8. - Census of wild elephants will be conducted in the forests of North Bengal in April. The census will start on 21 April and will be completed on 28 April, according to the divisional forest officer, Cooch Behar Division (wildlife), Mr Kalyan Das. Earlier, such a census was conducted in 2000.

Forest department sources said that the Eastern Dooars Elephant Reserve would be divided into two sectors for conducting the census. Each sector would be coordinated by a sector coordinator.

The first sector of the Eastern Dooars Elephant Reserve will be between the Torsa river and the Sankosh river, comprising forests of Buxa Tiger Reserve and Cooch Behar Forest Division.

The elephant range from Torsa river to Mechi river will be considered as the second sector for the census. The entire Wildlife-I, Wildlife-II, Jalpaiguri Division, Kalimpong Division, Baikanthapur Division, Kurseong Division and Cooch Behar Division will come under the elephant census. It was learnt from forest department sources that 306 census teams, consisting of about 1,200 forest personnel including representatives from 11 non-government organisations, will be engaged in the elephant census. Fifty captive elephants would also be mobilised for the census.

Forest department sources claimed that the number of wild elephants was rising in North Bengal. It was 292, according to the census held in 2000. During the census no tourist or visitor will be allowed in the forests and so the bungalows in the forests will be kept closed for tourists from 16 April to 29 April, a senior forest department official said.

Elephant drivers to curb menace

Tue, 8 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

The Telegraph

Jamshedpur, Feb. 7: Villagers living in areas adjoining Dalma forest can look forward to peaceful nights without fear of wild elephant attacks, which have become a regular feature in the past couple of years.

In an attempt to put an end to the rising problem of wild elephants venturing into residential areas and killing villagers, the forest department has hired the services of traditional elephant drivers from Midnapore district in West Bengal to control the menace.

About 35 residents of different villages were killed in elephant attacks in the past couple of years.

According to forest department officials, the decision was taken recently after efforts to get the services of trained elephants, �Kunki�, from Assam � to tame the wild animals � failed.

�The company from Assam which was given the contract to bring two trained elephants from Assam failed because the elephants owners were busy with some other contract. Due to the failure to bring the elephants from Assam, there has been substantial loss to both property and human life,� said forest officials. Divisional forest officer of Dhalbhumgarh Satyajeet Singh said the department has already engaged a group of 12 traditional drivers from Midnapore in West Bengal to keep the wild elephants restricted to the sanctuary area of Dalma jungles.

�These traditional drivers called Lukas from West Bengal and have been trained to restrict the movement of wild elephants for generations. The Lukas use traditional drums and torches to drive away the elephants into the dense forest whenever they try to venture out towards residential areas,� Singh said.

The officer said, along with these traditional elephant drivers, the forest department has also started efforts to train officials with the help of the group from Midnapore to tackle the problem more effectively.

�These trained staff of the forest department will be used for night patrolling in villages under MGM and Mango police station are which densely populated and frequented by wild elephants,� said Singh.

The DFO added that the department has also arranged crackers and kerosene oil to be distributed among the villagers to be used to ward off the elephants.

Hunting Rakes in $12bn

Mon, 7 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

The Herald (Harare)

ZIMBABWE earned $12 billion from the last hunting season, Parks and Wildlife Management Authority public relations manager Retired Major Edward Mbewe has said.

Rtd Major Mbewe said out of all the game, the elephant was the most expensive hunt at US$6 000 per beast, raising the highest amount, whilst the baboon fetched the cheapest price.

He went on to dismiss rumours that the authority had increased all its charges, saying it was only the elephant whose cost had gone up.

"The elephant is the only one that had its charges hiked from US$6 000 to US$8 500 because it is the animal that most hunters target," said Rtd Major Mbewe.

He said Zimbabwe has 545 registered hunters, the majority of whom were white who were taught professional hunting by their parents.

Rtd Major Mbewe said the authority planned to assist blacks enter the hunting industry.

In May last year, the authority established its own hunting safari firm, Mgundumu Safaris, at Matetsi near Victoria Falls as part of measures to increase its revenue base.

"The Mgundumu initiative went on quite well, especially so for an experimental programme," he said.

Elephant calf strays from herd and heads for town

Mon, 7 Feb 2005 00:00:00 -0700

BY R.S.N.MURALI, The Star

SEREMBAN: An elephant calf which had strayed from its herd caused a massive bottleneck along the road leading to Taman AST here, when motorists stopped to get a closer look at the animal.

The calf was among five elephants, which had made a special appearance at the launch of the TV3 Sure Heboh carnival at the MPS field here on Saturday.

Soon after the performance, the elephants were brought to a temporary site at an open space in Taman AST.

However, at about 10.40pm, the calf, which was believed to have been scared by fireworks, strayed from the herd and headed for the main road.

Motorist Sheikh Razak Ali, 36, said he was surprised to see the animal standing on the road.

�I was heading towards Jalan Sungai Ujong when my six-year-old daughter said, Ayah, gajah di depan(dad, elephant in front),'' he said.

Motorcyclist, Teh Chee Keong, 29, who was on his way to a teh tarik stall, said he was shocked to see the elephant on the road.

�I thought the animal had escaped from captivity and had wandered into Seremban town,� he said.

The situation, however, returned to normal a while later, when the animal's caretaker managed to lead it back to its herd.

Some 3,000 people thronged the MPS field to witness the carnival.