Let’s talk about the elephant in the room, quite literally. Sri Lanka is recognized for being home to the Asian Elephant. They’re a symbol of the country’s history, culture, and nature. In fact, there is a very high chance that spotting these magnificent animals is at the top of your travel itinerary in Sri Lanka. For all these reasons and more, these gentle giants, need our help now more than ever. The elephant population could be faced with possible extinction, and it is our responsibility as concerned naturalists and tourists to protect and save them at all costs. Educate yourself and contribute to elephant conservation in Sri Lanka, so you’d never have to question where you went wrong.
Scientific Classification:
The Asian Elephant that can be found in Sri Lanka are classified as Elephas maximus maximus. The Sri Lankan subspecies is the largest and also the darkest of the Asian elephants, with patches of depigmentation on its ears, face, trunk and belly. They’re usually seen in herds of 12-20, and are largely matriarchic. You could spot over 300 elephants in the world-renowned wildlife spectacle that is the Minneriya Gathering. Other places where elephants roam freely include Yala National Park, Wilpattu National Park, Gal Oya National Park and Udawalawe National Park.
Current Data on Elephant Population:
There are an estimated 7,500 wild elephants in Sri Lanka, as of now. Research has found that elephants occur across 60% of the island, which is a figure that is much higher than that of any other country. The majority of these charismatic giants live outside protected areas, jostling for space with humans in landscapes consisting of forests and scrubland intermixed with villages and farmland. The elephant habitats here are contiguous, making the population more continuous and less fragmented. The numbers have gone down drastically (16% decrease) over the past 55 years, which is all the more reason as to why everyone should actively contribute to help saving these rare gems.
Importance of Elephants to Sri Lanka:
Elephants hold symbolic, cultural and economic importance in Sri Lanka. They attract tourists who visit national parks to observe elephants in the wild. They are also the grassroots of the economic development in Sri Lanka, as the locals of old used to train them for agricultural growth. However, the domestication of elephants is prohibited and is a grave offence now.
The country is predominantly buddhist, and hold the elephants to a quasi-sacred status. They are used to carry the relics of the Buddha in religious ceremonies and rituals, and are considered to be animals of great wit, wisdom and religious merit.
Threats:
Elephant Human Conflict: As a result of forest clearing, human-elephant conflicts have also increased and led to the destruction of property and death of both humans and elephants. The problem is compounded by the elephant’s preference for crops such as sugar cane, bananas and other fruits frequently grown in the region. About 6% of the elephants that live near village borders die annually, due to this issue.
Habitat Loss: This is the primary threat to Sri Lankan elephants. Due to deforestation, they have lost a large area of what they used to call home. The blocks of forests they require are increasingly fragmented by clearing for human settlements and expanding agriculture in Sri Lanka.
How to Protect Them:
The Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWLC) are currently adopting the following measures to protect Asian Elephants in Sri Lanka. They employ elephant deterrence (the use of noise, flashes and other shock tactics to deter elephants) for situations that require immediate responses. The long term conservation methods include establishing new national parks. increasing the size of protected areas, launching elephant corridors to ensure safe passage, synergizing elephant conservation with economic development and controlling poaching. They have also introduced electrical fencing to farming villages and relocated elephants to less populated areas.
As a tourist in Sri Lanka, you could also do your part and contribute to this cause. Make direct donations to the national park or the DWLC. You could also learn more about elephants, volunteer with a national park or a local organization, treat wounded elephants with vets, work at a nursing home, and study sustainable land use and develop better ways for humans and elephants to coexist.
Photos sourced from Amila Tennakoon and David Cuesta.
