Indian Elephants in crisis

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Link:

http://wildlifepreservation.suite101.com/article.cfm/displaced_indian_elephants

 

Indian Elephants in crisis

Human-animal conflict and habitat loss in Assam

© Dawn M Smith

 

Jan 10, 2007

 

Crop raiding by elephants angers villagers and calves fall into

agricultural trenches resulting in separation from the herd making

life difficult for this mega-herbivore.

The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) IUCN red-listed as endangered

since 1986, is a mega-herbivore with huge habitat requirements -

300kgs of grass and leaves , 300 liters of water per day and 80

acres of land. Habitat fragmentation is their biggest enemy as they

are a migratory species, travelling great distances in search of

food. And there is no contiguous protected habitat, isolated from

human habitation, left for the elephants of India. So there is

conflict.

 

Crop raiding is a case in point. A year's crops can be consumed in a

very short time. People may be killed when they get in the way or

try to stop the elephants. Some scientists argue that this has

become a new feeding strategy, as crops provide quick and nutritious

food, rather than simply a result of habitat fragmentation. A highly

intelligent species it is not surprising that they would optimize

their feeding this way, but it does not make them popular with

people trying to survive in the same area. Elephants are shot or

poisoned by irate villagers.

 

The majority of India's elephants (51%) are found in Assam, where

the human population is lower than elsewhere in the country. But

with approximately 340people/sq.km, it is similar in human density

to Rhode Island. Try picturing herds of elephants co-existing with

humans there and you realize the magnitude of the problem.

 

Another result of humans and animals trying to inhabit the same

space is the displacement of animals. Young calves get separated

from their herd when they fall into irrigation ditches and channels

in tea gardens and paddy fields or when they fall behind when their

herd is chased off by villagers.

 

The Wildlife Trust of India is actively involved in protecting the

elephants in Assam. They rescue and rehabilitate many species,

including elephants, at their Center for Wildlife Rehabilitation and

Conservation, a project run in cooperation with the Assam Forest

Department. Where possible, when an elephant calf is rescued from a

ditch/channel or found separated from the herd, attempts are made to

return the animal to its natal herd. If that is not possible the

calf is taken to CWRC for hand-rearing and eventual return to the

wild. An equally important aspect is their conflict mitigation

project, working closely with affected communities to develop

strategies for ensuring that neither elephants nor humans suffer in

their shared space.