Monday, 13 November 2017

Indonesia's Critically Endangered Elephants

The conflict between Humans and Critically Endangered Sumatran Elephants in Indonesia has been going on for decades, with the elephants on the losing end of the battle. The villagers and farmers don't kill them for food. They do it to keep their homes and crops safe.

The grim result is the killing combined with shrinking elephant habitat contributes to an 80% population loss since the 1930s.

In Riau Province alone, where the highest number of elephants on the island was recorded in the 1980s, the population decreased from 1,342 in 1984 to 201 in 2007.

The major contributor to this conflict is the fight over land. Elephant Habitat is lowland, non-mountainous, relatively flat landscape below an altitude of 300 metres. That kind of land also makes great farmland, which is why humans have cut down the rainforest and planted crops. 

Sumatran Elephants need large Blocks of Forests to roam and graze. But that is almost impossible in Indonesia in the 21st Century where Forests are being constantly cut down to make way for Palm Oil Plantations. 

Credits :  Sumatran Elephant upgraded to critically endangered status from the Guardian 

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