Elephants attack Indonesian villagers
Antara 7 Jun 10;
Bengkalis, Riau (ANTARA News) - A herd of wild elephants attacked Petani village, Mandau sub-district, Riau district of Bengkalis, damaging four houses over the weekend.
Several Petani villager told ANTARA here Monday that the elephants attacked their village on Saturday night and Sunday morning. One of the four houses was in serious damage.
These wild animals had also killed a local resident recently, they said.
The villagers, whose houses were damaged, took refuge to their relatives` houses and neighbors.
Budi, 40, one of the villagers whose house was damaged, said at least 25 families had taken refuge for security reasons.
"The elephants` anger has made us trauma. Some locals who take refuge leave their plantations behind," he said.
Dewi, another villager, urged local government to take concern actions to end the human-elephant conflict.
The conflict itself had not only caused the villagers to suffer material losses but had also threatened human life, the 34-year-old villager said.
"The conservation rangers have been trying to deal with these wild elephants but it is not easy to tame them. In fact, the elephants keep damaging our houses and farmings," she said.
In response to the ongoing conflict, Head of Petani Village Rianto said the related authorities were expected to provide the victims of elephants` anger with compensations.
"The expected compensations are paid for the villagers whose houses are damaged or those who get injured or die. We want the local government not to remain passive," he said.
The Workers of Riau province`s natural conservation agency (BBKSDA) had planned to send a team to help tame the wild elephants, Head of Riau Province`s BBKSDA, Hutomo, said.
"We are sending the team to Mandau sub-district," he said.
The attacks of wild elephants to Petani village had also occurred last March.
At that time, the animals destroyed three houses. While there were no fatalities, the wild elephants` attacks had caused local residents to panic and take refuge to safer places.
The wild elephants did not only destroy three houses but also damaged the villagers` crops.(*)
Elephant saved at Malaysian oil palm plantation
The Star 8 Jun 10;
KOTA KINABALU: A weak and dehydrated young female Borneo pygmy elephant was rescued in an oil palm plantation on Sabah’s east coast amidst renewed calls by a wildlife expert for the creation of forest corridors.
State Wildlife Department director Laurentius Ambu said its personnel were alerted by Malaysian Palm Oil Board staff about the two-year-old elephant trapped in a moat within the Lahad Datu plantation.
He said the elephant appeared to have been left behind by its herd, likely from the Tabin Wildlife Sanctuary in the district.
The find of the pachyderm on Friday came barely two weeks after another six-month-old female elephant was rescued from Ladang Felcra/KTS, also in the Lahad Datu district.
Laurentius said both elephants were being transferred to the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park about 15km from the city for observation.
He said the department personnel had also fitted a tracking collar on an adult female elephant in the Lower Kinabatangan region on the east coast.
This would enable wildlife experts to track the animal’s movements to enable them to better map out a forest corridor for the animals.
NGO Hutan Elephant Conser-vation scientific director Dr Marc Ancrenaz said forest corridors were urgently needed to link the isolated elephant population currently trapped in the lower Kinabatangan flood plains area.
“Due to increased human activity and extensive oil palm plantations, the herds in Kinabatangan are completely disconnected from the elephant population in the forest reserves of Segaliud, Tangkulap and Deramakot,” he said.
Wild elephant finally captured at Malaysian village
The Star 8 Jun 10;
BERA: A wild elephant that has been roaming around a palm oil plantation and destroying crops belonging to villagers in Felda Mayam and Felda Purun near here for several years was finally captured by the elephant unit of the Pahang Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan).
The elephant, weighing some 25 tonnes, was captured at the Purun forest reserve in Felda Kerapai, near Felda Mayam.
According to the unit’s assistant chief Mohd Arzaimran Arifin, villagers had made numerous complaints to the department about four wild elephants roaming in these areas since last year.
He said the elephants had destroyed crops belonging to villagers and oil palm trees under the replanting scheme in the settlements.
“We captured one of the elephants last week and expect to catch the other three soon.
“However, so far the other three elephants have not come close to the village since and have not been sighted yet,” he said, adding that the captured elephant had been transferred to Taman Negara in Kenyir, Terengganu.
Mohd Arzaimran said the wild elephant was calmed by two “denak” (tamers) before the relocation process.
Meanwhile, Kampung Purun village headman Ahmad Abdul Latif said the wild elephants were active at night and the residents did not dare to go out to their plantations at night.
“In the mornings, we will find our crops of banana trees and oil palm trees destroyed.
“We feel even more frightened after a plantation worker was killed by a wild elephant a few years ago.”
He hopes that the remaining elephants will be caught soon and relocated for the safety of the villagers.
