Baby Elephants Electrocuted To Death By Orchard Fence

Two baby elephants have been reportedly electrocuted to death in Thailand after a fruit orchard owner built an electric fence to keep the elephants out.

Parks and Wildlife officials believed they may have become separated from their herd in the eastern province of Chanthaburi and ventured into the orchard where one stepped on the fence and the other’s trunk touched it. Veterinarians say the elephants were around two years old.

The Department of National Parks and Wildlife estimates there are roughly 3,340 wild elephants live in 69 wildlife sanctuaries and national parks across the country-with the number of wild elephants rising.

However along with a rise in its population, more conflicts have been developing between elephants and farmers. Even more now as the elephants, searching for food, sometimes eat their crops.

However, loss of habitat and poaching helped lead to a steep decline in the elephant population; where it once totalled 100,000 wild elephants.

Some poaching is still taking place despite harsh penalties and valiant efforts by forest rangers to stop it. Several forest rangers have been killed or wounded in recent years battling poachers.

There are about 3,500 domesticated elephants at parks and sanctuaries in Thailand.

The Department of National Parks said it would try to reduce those conflicts by providing additional food sources into the elephant habitat. Addiontally, they plan to compensate those farmers whose crops have been damaged by hungry elephants.

Police are reportedly questioning the orchard’s owner over the elephants’ deaths.

 

SOURCE: Chiang Rai Times

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