15 Asian elephants have strayed far from their natural habitats.
Last week, footage of a large herd of 15 Asian elephants made the rounds on Chinese social media. What was an interesting image at first became much more of a concern as the elephants stomped through residential farmlands, devouring crops and smashing barns. A car dealer reported that the elephants broke into his shop and drank two tonnes of water. Damages caused by the elephants are estimated to exceed 6.8 million yuan ($1.07 million USD).
15 Asian elephants were seen migrating north in China among the streets of Eshan County in the Yunnan province on May 27. Authorities reportedly used vehicles to keep the elephants on the right track. The animals began the journey in the Meng Yang Zi natural preservation area 🐘 pic.twitter.com/kQ8TpXt16z
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) May 29, 2021
The governmental task force that has been monitoring the elephants’ progression over the past week were alerted when the herd came within 3 kilometers of Kunming. It was at this point their priorities shifted away from simply monitoring and more toward directing them away from the city. Officials have been very gradually shifting the herd’s path using large roadblocks and food lures.
China tries to keep herd of wild elephants from entering major city https://t.co/4NmUor8EDF
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) June 2, 2021
It isn’t entirely clear why the elephants have migrated so far north from their usual habitat, though zoologists have theorized it’s due to the gradual loss of edible forest plants.
“Large-scale human engineering developments have exacerbated the ‘islanding’ of elephant habitats,” Zhang Li, a professor on mammal conservation at Beijing Normal University told the Global Times . “The traditional buffer zones between humans and elephants are gradually disappearing, and the chances of elephants’ encountering humans naturally increase greatly.”
Naomi Osaka Withdraws from French Open
-
Deportation Deadline Sparks Humanitarian Worries in Pakistan Pakistan’s government announced on Monday that almost 200,000 Afghan nationals have voluntarily...
-
Lessons Learned Shape Taiwan’s Preparedness in a Changing World Taiwan’s military has embarked on a comprehensive initiative to strengthen...
-
White House Reveals Disturbing Executions and Threats in Conflict The White House has disclosed deeply concerning information regarding the...
-
Military Exercises Coincide with Treaty Developments Amid Global Concerns Russia recently executed a large-scale military exercise to rehearse its...
-
Company Addresses Auto-Translation Error Impacting Palestinian Users Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has issued a formal apology for...
-
China’s Ambitious Plans to Double Its Nuclear Warhead Stockpile Highlighted in Pentagon’s Annual Report The annual report released by...
-
Strengthening Partnerships and Providing Support in Challenging Times In a collaborative effort between the U.S. Congress and the White...
-
Humza Yousaf Extends Support and Sanctuary Amidst Gaza Conflict Humza Yousaf, the First Minister of Scotland, has extended a...
-
U.S. Stresses Peace and Humanitarian Aid in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict In an exclusive interview aired on Sunday, President Joe Biden...
-
Urgent Call for Aid as Communities Reel from Tremors The western province of Herat in Afghanistan has been rocked...
-
Calls for Peace Amid Diverse Perspectives on Ongoing Crisis In response to a series of recent demonstrations across Canada,...
-
Celebrity Voices in the Israel-Palestine Dialogue In the midst of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict, a group of celebrities has...