Tackling human, elephant conflict a mammoth task
Print Edition
THE war between humans and elephants rages in southwest China’s Yunnan Province.
This year alone, three people have been killed by wild elephants there, and three elephants are known to have been killed by either pesticides or gunshot.
A villager from Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, a popular tourist destination where elephants feature prominently on any itinerary, was detained by police on Sunday for killing a pregnant elephant.
Named by police as Wang, the villager opened fire with a homemade gun on a group of elephants that had invaded his land. A female elephant weighing more than 3 tonnes was later found dead in Wang’s fish pond with a bullet in her head. The cow was carrying a 99-kilogram male calf and was almost ready to give birth.
On June 26, two immature bull elephants were found dead with blood oozing from their mouths, trunks and anuses. Police found pesticides in their stomachs and have not ruled out the possibility that they were poisoned by farmers. As many as 16 wild elephants were seen in the area at the end of November and various incidents have since been reported.
Asian elephants are an endangered species and protected in China. About 250 to 300 roam Xishuangbanna and other parts of south Yunnan. Fragmented habitat means they often intrude into villages, damaging crops and even attacking humans.
Ideal habitat
A villager died after being attacked while working in his fields in June. His wife escaped death after a shed collapsed, shielding her from further attacks.
There have been at least three elephant attacks in the vicinity this year. Two women died from such attacks in the area in 2012 and 2013.
Heavily forested Simao District is an ideal habitat for elephants. About 60 are known to roam the district. Six people have died and nine have been injured in elephant attacks since 1999.
Farmers say they are afraid to harvest their crops, students report nerve-racking trips to school and local people are said to go less frequently to market. Some even say they are too afraid to sleep in their own houses for fear that hungry elephants will break in searching for food.
The number of wild elephants is on the rise in China, which most people agree is a good thing. But for those living in close proximity to the animals, they pose a very real threat to their lives, as well as raiding and trampling crops and tearing down trees and houses.
Simao forestry bureau attributed 33 deaths and 165 injuries to wild animals, mostly elephants, from 1991 to 2010. In the whole province, 1,324 deaths and about 390 million yuan (US$63.7 million) of losses have been blamed on wild animals over the past decade.
Such tragedies are set to become more frequent if the central government campaign to improve the environment is successful and elephant numbers increase, many fear.
An adult elephant eats up to 300 kilograms of food each day and drinks a large quantity of water. It walks dozens of kilometers while foraging.
Chen Mingyong, an elephant expert with Yunnan University, believes that conservation corridors are key to resolving the conflict. Linking fragmented habitat with protected corridors will reduce the overlapping space inhabited by both humans and elephants.
Areas where bamboo and bananas are grown specifically for the elephants will also help. Most conflict comes from their endless search for food.
Simao government spent over 600,000 yuan last year on an “elephant canteen” that includes a banana garden, a bamboo forest and a pool.
The provincial government faces mounting compensation bills for damage caused by the protected animals. The annual cost can run to 10 million yuan.In 2009, Yunnan contracted China Pacific Insurance Co to insure crops, property and lives in some regions. The government pays the premiums.
Li Laoxiao has tried everything to drive the elephants away from his plantation, but to little avail.
“Now I just let them eat. I get 15 yuan for each damaged rubber tree, and 10 yuan for a banana tree,” said Li.
In November, 114 villagers from nine villages in Simao petitioned for better protection and higher compensation.
Yang Zhengrong of the insurers’ Yunnan branch said that the company paid over 81 million yuan in compensation from 2010 to 2013 but received less than 48 million yuan in premiums.
“The compensation mechanism needs to be improved. It is not sustainable in the long run,” Yang said.
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