T

he habitat of the endangered Asiatic elephant is distributed across the continent of Asia, stretching from Nepal, Bhutan, India, southern China (Yunnan), Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and the Malay Peninsula to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. This is the home of the wild elephant population outside Africa. Three sub-species of the Asiatic elephant are recognized, the dominant one being the Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), whose habitat covers a major part of South and Southeast Asia. Two other sub-species of the Asiatic elephant are the endangered Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) endemic to Sri Lanka; and the critically endangered Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus), native to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. Anthropogenic pressure has severely impacted almost all the sub-species of the Asiatic elephant through habitat destruction and fragmentation, illegal encroachment in prime elephant habitats of Asia and poaching.

However, the worst situation has been reported for the Sumatran elephants with an estimated loss of more than 80 percent of its original habitat in Sumatra. The wild population of Sumatran elephants has been pushed towards extinction and is in urgent need of long-term conservation management to prevent their possible extinction.

Amid a lack of funding, awareness, infrastructure, skill and experience of local foresters and conservation staff, the national treasure of Indonesia is at a critical crossroads. The Indonesian Government, local conservation NGOs and ecologists need to come together to work on a common platform for the conservation of this critically endangered species. The sick and ailing elephants need to be segregated from the wild herds and provided with veterinary treatment.

The governments of Sri Lanka, Thailand and India have successfully established elephant shelters and elephant hospitals for the sick and old elephants in their respective countries and also converted them into important tourist attraction centers drawing both money as well as helping in the process of conservation through education and awareness.

Similar efforts are essential for the conservation of the Sumatran elephant, a national treasure of Indonesia. The public needs to be made aware of the importance of conservation of the elephants and the special funding needs for adopting long-term measures.

Saikat Kumar Basu
Lethbridge AB, Canada