The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation

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The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 12-27-2023

This thread is dedicated to the Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus). Information regarding its ecology, conservation, biology and contemporary and historical relations with humans shall be discussed here. Data regarding the extinct members of the Elephas genus is also welcome.

The Goal of this Thread:

Collect as much information about Asian elephants as possible.
Raise awareness regarding the status of this species

A Tusker male Indian elephant. Photo by Dr Ullas Karanth. Source.

*This image is copyright of its original author

RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 01-02-2024

The Mammalian Species Account of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) and literature on the Asian Elephant

Mammalian Species. No. 182. Elephas maximus - Jeheskel Shoshani & John F. Eisenberg Link

Literature on the ecology of the Asiatic Elephant

Ecology of the Asian elephant in southern India. I. Movement and habitat utilization patterns LINK
Asian Elephant Elephas Maximus Habitat Use and Ranging in Fragmented Rainforest and Plantations in the Anamalai Hills, India LINK
A brief review of the status, distribution and biology of wild Asian elephants Elephas maximus LINK
Ecology and conservation of Sumatran elephants (Elephas maximus sumatranus) in Sumatra, Indonesia LINK
Feeding preferences of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) in Nepal LINK

Dr Raman Sukumar. He is renowned Indian ecologist who is celebrated regarding his research of Asian elephants and human-elephant conflicts. The ResearchGate profile of Dr Raman Raman Sukumar

*This image is copyright of its original author

A Tusker bull elephant named 'Sando' in the Yala National Park, Sri Lanka Source

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RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 01-04-2024

Current Status of Asian Elephants in China

Introduction

Asian elephants are only found in a very small area of southern China with a total number of individuals less than 200. They occur in bamboo-broadleaf mixed forests along gullies and rivers, at altitudes under 1000 m. Current elephant habitat is highly fragmented and consists of isolated patches situated among extensive stretches of tea and rubber plantations, and croplands. Habitat loss and poaching were once major threats to elephants in China, but since the 1980s, effective conservation measures have been adopted by the Chinese government to protect elephants by establishing nature reserves and banning illegal hunting (Zhang et al. 2006). Asian elephants are listed as a class I protected wildlife species under the Wildlife Protection Law (Zhang 2007).

In the current distribution area in Yunnan, local indigenous groups including Aini, Dai, Jingpo and Wa believe that elephants can bring luck. Elephant figurines made of wood or stone and depiction of elephants on paintings can be found in many local temples. Elephants are
also used as a symbol of good fortune in local religious events. Elephants are an important tourist attraction in the Wild Elephant Valley
in Xishuangbanna. However, with the rapid increase in human activities in elephant range areas in the past decade, human–elephant conflict
has become a problem, challenging the survival of this endangered species in China (Zhang & Wang 2003).

Elephants in China. Photos by Aidong Luo

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Current Status of Asian Elephants in China

RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 01-13-2024

Dr Farina Othman gives a talk regarding the conservation of wild elephants of the Malaysian Borneo

RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 01-16-2024

Images of wild elephants across their range. Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Vietnam, Myanmar, and India

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RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 02-13-2024

The Asian Elephant's Conservation Conundrums - Dr Raman Sukumar

An incredible discussion by three renowned Bangladeshi zoologists regarding thee status of the elephant in Bangladesh. (The Speakers: Dr Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmed, Dr Monirul Khan & Dr Tapan Kumar Dey)

RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 02-29-2024

A case study on conflict intensity between humans and elephants at Teknaf Wildlife Sanctuary, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

Humans’ and elephants’ conflict is considered a common phenomenon in Bangladesh due to extreme anthropogenic interferences on elephant habitats. Concurrently, the landless people were encouraged to encroach on forest land due to their financial hardship and poor and weak forest management systems. We conducted our research work through frequent field visits, site-oriented positioned research correspondents, and an adopted semistructured questionnaire. We recorded a total of 903 conflict-related cases between humans and elephants, including crop raids (N = 337), house raids (N = 200), homestead garden raids (N = 263), and accidental attacks (N = 103), across sites, during August 2018 to July 2019, in Teknaf Wildlife Sanctuary (TWS). Elephant attack rates varied significantly between traditional forest dwellers (N = 179), illegal settlers (N = 370), villagers nearest forest (N = 212), Rohingya refugees (N = 53), and traditional forest different tribes (N = 89). It also varied along a space gradient, including inside forests (N = 423), buffer zones (N = 297), and outside forest villages (N = 183). The number of conflicts possessed by elephants varied discriminately and was unparalleled among different professions such as cattle ranchers (N = 104), gardeners (N = 112), paddy cultivators (N = 236), vegetable growers (N = 158), betel-leaf growers (N = 163), and forest resources collectors (N = 130). Most conflicts between humans and elephants occurred significantly during the night (N = 592), many during the morning (N = 154), evening (N = 138), and much less during midday (N = 19). The conflict intensity was also higher on the east coast (N = 552) than on the west coast (N = 351). The seasonal variation, including summer (N = 367), monsoon (N = 274), and winter (N = 262), was also significant. The elephant herd size was also an important factor triggering the conflict in TWS. We conclude that conflict intensity between humans and elephants is driven by settlers’ location, forest gradient, the profession of forest-dependent people, their household size and income level, attack time, and season.

A case study on conflict intensity between humans and elephants at Teknaf Wildlife Sanctuary, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

Villagers’ experiences, perceptions of human-elephant conflict and attitudes towards elephant conservation in south-eastern Bangladesh

Abstract

We describe villagers’ experiences and perceptions of human-elephant conflict (HEC), and attitudes towards elephant conservation near elephant habitat in southeastern Bangladesh. The study was based on a questionnaire survey administered through in person interviews. We sampled 171 respondents across 109 villages. The results showed that crop raiding and damage to houses, fruit gardens, and seedlings were perceived as the causes of conflict. Seventy percent believed habitat improvement as useful for HEC mitigation and 73% favoured elephant conservation, at least in principle.

Villagers’ experiences, perceptions of human-elephant conflict and attitudes towards elephant conservation in south-eastern Bangladesh

Photo of two wild elephants by Dr Monirul Khan. LINK Southeastern Bangladesh has the only resident breeding population of elephants in the country. Migrants of upto 100 do exist in the North.

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RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 05-10-2024

Elephant Management in Bangladesh

This is a chapter from the book 'Trampled boundaries: Understanding elephants in the Indian Subcontinent'. This chapter gives a reliable summarized information regarding the status of wild elephants. It covers their distribution status and human-elephant conflict in the country.

About the authors: Dr Mohammad Abdulaziz and Dr Anwarul Islam are renowned zoologists from Bangladesh and both have contributed immensely to the study and research of wildlife of this country.

Summary of the information
Distribution of elephants in Bangladesh:

Elephants were once found all through out Bangladesh
Resident breeding population of elephants are found in the southeast of the country (Chittagong Hill Tracts)
There is more or less than 300 elephants
Non-resident elephants in the northeast often come from India
Elephants are critically endangered in Bangladesh

Human-Elephant Conflict:

Elephants are losing their habitat. This is increasing H-E Conflict
This conflict leads to deaths of both humans and elephants
The conflict is on the rise
Initiatives have been taken to mitigate such conflict

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RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 05-21-2024

Treatment of an injured elephant and raising awareness regarding the status of elephants in Bangladesh.

Dr Rezaul Karim Chowdhury (A Bangladeshi forest officer and former member of IUCN Bangladesh, who studied at the Widlife Institute of India) writes :

Bangla

"লংগদু উপজেলার চাইল্যাতলীতে আজ অসুস্থ হাতিকে ট্র‍্যাংকুলাইজ করে সফলভাবে তার চিকিৎসা শেষ করা হয়েছে। চমকপ্রদ বিষয় হলো আহত হাতিটি একটি পুরুষ হাতী। তার সাথেই হাতির বাচ্চাটি অবস্থান করছে। অসুসথ অবস্থাতেই পুরুষ হাতিটি বাচ্চাটিকে সারাক্ষণ আগলে রাখছে। অভিযানে আমাদের সাথে ছিলেন চট্টগ্রাম ভেটেরিনারি বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় ও বংগবন্ধু শেখ মুজিব সাফারী পার্ক, কক্সবাজারের বিশেষজ্ঞ দল। একাজে আমাদেরকে সর্বাত্মক সহযোগিতার জন্য ভাসান্যাদম এলিফেন্ট রেসপন্স টিমের প্রত্যেক সদস্যকে এবং চাইল্যতলী গ্রামবাসিকে অসংখ্য ধন্যবাদ। সৌহার্দ্য বজায় থাক হাতী ও মানুষের মাঝে।"

"Successfully completed his treatment by tranquilizing the sick elephant in Chailatali of Longdu sub-district. Surprisingly the wounded elephant is a male elephant. Baby elephant staying with him. The male elephant is protecting the baby all the time when he was sick. Chittagong Veterinary University and expert team of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Safari Park, Cox's Bazar were with us in the mission. Many thanks to every member of Vasanyadam Elephant Response Team and Chailatali villagers for their great support to us in this work. May the harmony remain between elephants and humans."

*This image is copyright of its original author

Raising awareness about elephants among villagers who live close to the elephants. He writes:

Bangla:

"মানুষ ও হাতির দ্বন্দ্ব নিরসন এবং হাতি ও মানুষ উভয়কে নিরাপদ রাখতে জুড়ী উপজেলাধীন পূর্ব জুড়ী ইউনিয়নের দূর্গাপুর গ্রামে মৌলভীবাজার বন্যপ্রাণী বিভাগ ও সিলেট বন বিভাগের যৌথ উদ্যোগে আজ ২১/১/২৩ তারিখ সকালে এক সচেতনতামূলক সভা হয়।"

"An awareness meeting was held today morning 21/1/23 by the joint initiative of Moulavibazar Wildlife Department and Sylhet Forest Department in Durgapur village of East Juri Union under Juri sub-district to solve the conflict of human and elephant and keep both elephants and humans safe."

*This image is copyright of its original author

RE: The Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus) - Biology, History & Conservation - TheHyenid76 - 08-24-2024

Status, distribution & scientific literature on the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) in Sri Lanka

From 'The Asian Elephant: Ecology and Management' by Dr Raman Sukumar. Description of the distribution of elephants in Sri Lanka. LINK

"Elephants are distributed over a wide area extending from the northwest through the dry eastern zone to the southeast in Sri Lanka (Fig. 2.5). Elephant distribution can be considered under four regions."

Number of elephants given under each of the four regions:
Northwest region: 200 Elephants
Northern Province: 200-500 Elephants
Mahaweli Ganga Basin: About 800 Elephants
Southeastern region: "The figure of 650-700 given by McKay 81973) for this region seems to be an underestimate (Olivier 1978a)."

Numbers of elephants in Sri Lanka numbers in the thousands. Elephant densities in Sri Lanka are among the highest in Asia and some populations can be compared to elephant densities of India.

*This image is copyright of its original author

[Fig. 2.5. Map of elephant distribution in Sri Lanka. The major regions described in the text are 1, Northwest; 2, Northern Province; 3, Mahaweli Ganga Basin; 4, Southeast]

*This image is copyright of its original author

From the IUCN Red List Assessment 'Elephas maximus, Asian Elephant'. LINK

"The species was once found throughout Sri Lanka, but today elephants are restricted mostly to the lowlands in the dry zone where they are still fairly widespread in north, south, east, north-western, north-central and south-eastern Sri Lanka; with the exceptions of small remnant populations in the Peak Wilderness Area and Sinharaja Area, elephants are absent from the wet zone of the country. The species continues to lose range to development activities throughout the island."

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Current status of of Asian Elephants in Sri Lanka. LINK

Important information:

"Sri Lanka holds an important position with regard to Asian elephant conservation. Well over 10% of the global Asian elephant population in less than 2% of elephant range (Leimgruber et al. 2003), makes Sri Lanka the range country with the highest density of elephants. It also has one of the highest human densities among range countries. Therefore successes and failures in Sri Lanka can provide critical insights into mitigating human-elephant conflict (HEC) and conserving elephants. In addition Sri Lankan elephants are recognized as a distinct subspecies. Although genetic support for a sub-specific distinction is low, Sri Lanka has the highest genetic diversity of Asian elephants (Fernando et al. 2000; Fleisher et al. 2001)."

"Elephants hold a central position in the country’s two main religions Buddhism and Hinduism as well as in Sri Lankan culture. The elephant is considered a symbol of physical and mental strength, intelligence, responsibility, good luck and prosperity. Elephants are kept in a number of temples and feature prominently in annual pageants named ‘peraheras’ (Fig. 2)."

"The major threat to elephants in Sri Lanka is habitat loss and fragmentation through conversion to settlements and permanent cultivation. The influx of people into areas inhabited by elephants results in increased interaction and conflict, leading to the death of over 200 elephants annually with a trend of increasing numbers (Fig. 4). Most of these elephant deaths are caused by gun shot injuries from farmers defending their crops and trap guns (Table 1). A new addition is ‘hakkapatas’ - a small pressure mine concealed in fruits or vegetables, which shatters the jaw on being bitten down upon. During and in the aftermath of the war, death and injuries of elephants due to landmines were reported in the north and east."

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Key information derived from this post:

Elephant densities in Sri Lanka are among the highest in all range countries
The Asian elephant has a widespread distribution in Sri Lanka
Elephant population numbers in the thousands
Elephants play an important role in the religion and culture of the Sri Lankan People
Habitat degradation and conflict with people are the biggest threats to elephants in the country
During the civil war, many elephants were killed and their habitats were massively damaged
Human geopolitical conflicts can have devastating impacts on nature (this shall be discussed later with various regions as case studies)

Elephant in Wilpattu National Park (northwestern region) and elephant in Yala National Park (southwestern region).

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