It sounds like an unlikely set of words with little to do with one another. And yet, recently a story has emerged which links these three in the most appalling way.
The last news item I read before going to bed a few months ago, was about a wild female elephant in India which had wandered out of a forest, in search of food1. Pineapples filled with explosives were laid out by local people in a bid to deter wild boars from damaging crops. The elephant ate one or some of these pineapples and the firecrackers exploded in the animal’s mouth. Although veterinarians were on hand to try to tranquilize the elephant and help in her predicament, she placed herself in the middle of a river possibly due to her increased fear of humans. The cool water may also have provided some relief for the explosion in her mouth. Once in the river, it was impossible for the vets to tranquilize her as it would require her to lie down and that meant an inevitable drowning. Other domesticated elephants were brought in to try to coax her out of the river so she could be treated but she refused to move. The damage to the elephant’s mouth was extensive and she starved to death. An autopsy revealed that this female had been a few months pregnant and the fetus was almost intact.
The tragic truth is that this is not an isolated case. India has a human population of 1.4 billion and shares its resources with a rich diversity of wildlife. In some cases, “sharing” may not be the right word. Access to resources and space becomes a real battle between humans and wild animals, especially at the boundary of protected areas and reserves. As humans edge closer and closer towards forests, clearing them away for fields and cultivation, the buffer zones between humans and wildlife diminish in size. The space given to wildlife is ever-shrinking and in their pursuit of survival and resources, they inevitably come into close contact with humans.
Wild elephants often find themselves in human-dominated landscapes which were previously covered in forests. Asian elephants are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species2. Their global population is estimated to be between 40,000 and 50,000 with a decreasing general population trend. Elephants need to eat about 200 kg of plant matter and drink about 190 liters of water a day, meaning that if they stay in one place for too long, they would deplete these natural resources. Hence, elephants migrate; but with their habitat increasingly converted to farmlands, the loss and fragmentation of continuous forests force not only elephants but other wildlife out into human-dominated landscapes. Sadly, because of India’s ever-growing human population, wildlife on the subcontinent loses more and more habitats. Human-elephant conflicts are rife across the country; although different techniques have been applied to avoid and reduce these conflicts, elephants and many other species continue to die at the hands of humans. It is an extremely complex situation involving the poorest of humans who are protecting their hard-earned crops, and an endangered species fighting for space and resources.
A recent study in Guinea3 has shown that chimps are deliberately willing to put themselves in harm’s way to obtain crops that provide greater energetic benefits over wild foods. The study showed that chimps that regularly fed on cultivated crops were healthier, reached maturity earlier, grew bigger, and lived longer. Humans have over centuries carefully selected certain plants to cultivate based on their palatability and high energy yield making these crops an attractive foraging option for wildlife all over the world. Research4 has shown that the crops which are among the most attractive to elephants include finger millet, maize, sugar cane, and paddy when they ripen. Elephants raid the fields but will also visit storage areas to access harvested grains. Farmers have attempted several strategies to protect their crops and avoid great financial loss. Elephants raid crops almost exclusively at night5. Traditionally, farmers would spend the night in “machans”, elevated platforms made from natural materials, in or at the edge of their field6. As soon as wild animals were spotted, the farmers would beat drums and make noise, and burst firecrackers or fire weapons to scare them away. These interactions can result in the loss of animals and at times human life. During the season when the crops were ready to be harvested, after taking cover in nearby forests during the day, they would appear in fields to feed at dusk and would cause considerable damage and financial loss for the farmers. After all, a few hours in a field with highly nutritious crops can feed an elephant more efficiently than the same amount of time and food in a forest; hence the attraction. As biologists became aware of the problem, they began to look for solutions to reduce the loss of lives on both sides. Radio/GPS collars and tags are used as early warning systems; elephant movements can be tracked remotely and as they approach fields farmers can be warned in time to save their crops7. Other methods include using electric fences, motion-activated lights, and firecrackers/firearms to scare away wild animals. Some farmers have opted to cultivate inedible crops like cotton or lines their fields with chilli plants to dissuade wildlife raids. The most recent type of elephant raiding deterrent is bees; studies in several East African countries have shown that farmers are benefitting from beehive fences8.
What I found interesting and quite disturbing was the reaction of some researchers and biologists across the country following this tragedy. The most common comments were “it happens all the time” or “it’s not an isolated case”. It is true, elephants regularly die in human-wildlife-related conflicts often in horrendous ways. However, the complacency with which these statements were delivered was quite shocking to me. It sounded like: “it happens all the time, why is this case any different, and why make such a noise about it?”. Perhaps the current pandemic and lock-down have reduced the number of news items, moving stories like these into the headlines, reaching the masses who are oblivious to such circumstances. Perhaps the way she died and the fact that she was pregnant, horrified people enough for them to react. Whatever the reason, the news gained momentum and even appeared in many international newspapers. As in many fields (racism in police actions, domestic violence, casteism, rapes, etc.), high profile cases bring the issue to the attention of the public at large and often force the authorities to take action and bring about much-needed changes.
The real problem I see here is that although people in the environmental field and those directly involved in wildlife conflicts are fully aware of these situations, they don’t seem to acknowledge that the average Indian is ignorant of what’s happening at the frontline of the battle for resources. But now that people in cities and urban areas around the world learn about these conflicts, perhaps it’s time to change the way these struggles are resolved. “It’s always been done like this” is no longer an acceptable position. Conservation strategies must adapt to the ever more challenging situation. Regarding human population growth, it is a simple mathematical fact: there can be no unlimited growth in a limited system.
Furthermore, some biologists say, “it’s not about the individual, it’s about the species”. I disagree; when it comes to an endangered species, every individual counts. That’s the whole point of protecting endangered species. Sexually dimorphic species like Asian elephants, where the males carry tusks and females don’t, are particularly vulnerable to the loss of individuals. Extensive poaching in Southern India has shown just how important every individual is; at one point there was one male for 122 females in 1987 in the Periyar Tiger Reserve9. Such ratios can be catastrophic for the genetic diversity of future generations.
Few wild species have the cultural importance that elephants have in India. The elephant-headed God Ganesha is the patron of arts and sciences and a deity linked to wisdom, intellect, success, and prosperity. Elephants were used in wars, for logging as well as during religious ceremonies. Indian kings of all faiths travelled on intricately decorated elephants while shikars in the past hunted from the backs of elephants. The close relationship between Indians and elephants has evolved over time. For the long-term survival of India’s elephants, we must find and introduce crop and village protection strategies that are harmless to the animals, and we must enforce wildlife protection laws. It is a monumental task but killing endangered species is not the answer.
1https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-52918603; https://www.cbsnews.com/news/elephant-killed-explosive-pineapple-india-man-arrested/
2 https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/7140/12828813
4 Gubbi S (2012). Patterns and correlates of human-elephant conflict around a south Indian reserve. Biological Conservation 148 (2012) 88–95
5 Sukumar, R. 2003. The living elephants. Evolutionary ecology, behaviour, and conservation. Oxford University Press, New York, 478 pp.
6 https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-13728-5_67
7 http://aanemane.org/wa_files/dh%20article%20may19%202019.pdf; https://news.mongabay.com/2019/03/reducing-human-elephant-encounters-with-calls-texts-and-digital-signs/
8 https://news.mongabay.com/2019/09/beehive-fences-can-help-mitigate-human-elephant-conflict/
9 Chandran, P. M. (1990). Population dynamics of elephants in Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala. In The proceedings of the elephant symposium: 51–56. Karunakaran, C. K. (Ed.). Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Forest Department.
Author
Malini Pittet began her career as a wildlife biologist, specializing in large felids conservation (leopards, jaguars, ocelots) working in the Amazon, Yemen, India, etc. Although she loved it, she was increasingly frustrated that important information was being buried in scientific papers without concrete action and change on the ground. She was also looking for ways to spread awareness about conservation; the success stories as well as the plights of wildlife worldwide. She decided to change her career and focus on wildlife photojournalism and travel consultation in an attempt to bridge this gap. Photojournalism gives her the opportunity to work with projects that are making a difference for endangered species. Travel consultation has given her the opportunity to bring people to places they would otherwise never choose to travel to.
Editor
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