Nghe An: Wild elephants appear near residential areas

Regarding the recent appearance of a wild elephant near a residential area in Manh village (Muong Chong commune, Nghe An province), on August 10, Mr. Vo Minh Son, Director of Pu Huong Nature Reserve, said that the elephant appearing in the clip posted by a local resident on his personal page, which was then shared and spread rapidly on social networks over the past few days, is the only remaining individual in the area.

This is a female elephant, living alone in the protected forest and quite old. Through observation and monitoring, over the years, this elephant has left the forest many times to look for food near residential areas such as corn fields, sugarcane fields, and orchards of local people. Although it has not attacked humans, it has affected production and caused fear among local people.

According to Mr. Vo Minh Son, to limit the risk of conflict between elephants and humans, local forest rangers, in coordination with the local authorities of Muong Chong commune and local people, have implemented safe measures to chase away elephants; at the same time, they have promoted and raised people's knowledge on how to identify traces, avoid contact with elephants and protect crops.

Nghe An province is the only locality where wild elephants are still recorded living in the wild. Currently, the local wild elephant population is about 14-16 individuals, distributed into 5 herds. Of these, there are 3 isolated herds that are not likely to develop.

In addition to the two wild elephants (mother and baby) in Quy Chau district (formerly), there is also a female elephant living in the forests of Bac Son commune (formerly Quy Hop district) and a female elephant in Chau Khe commune (formerly Con Cuong district).

The herd of about 4 elephants in Pu Mat National Park, near the Vietnam - Laos border, has not been recorded in recent years, and is likely to have "migrated" to Laos. The largest herd of elephants, with 8 to 9 elephants, currently lives in the buffer zone of Pu Mat National Park, often appearing in the Cao Veu village area, Phuc Son commune (formerly Anh Son district).

In recent years, due to the shrinking of forest areas, habitats and scarce food sources, elephants have increasingly tended to move to areas near residential areas, such as farms, fields, and even leisurely walk on the roads. This has been recorded many times in communes in Con Cuong district and Quy Chau district (formerly).

Before returning to the forest, elephants stay for many hours, even overnight, in the areas where they appear, posing a potential safety risk and affecting people's livelihoods.

What experts are worried about is that most of the elephants in the herds living in the communes of Nghe An are already adults, many of them are old and have difficulty reproducing. If not protected and supported to develop and reproduce, in the near future, the wild elephant herd in Nghe An will gradually decrease in number and face the risk of disappearing.

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/nghe-an-voi-rung-xuat-hien-gan-khu-dan-cu-post807722.html