KUALA KRAI, Oct 18 — A wild elephant dubbed “Awang Uban”, which encroached into Kampung Tok Uban, Lata Rek, was successfully captured and relocated by the Kelantan Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) to Taman Negara in Pahang today.
Kuala Gandah National Elephant Conservation Centre (NECC) operations chief Mohamad Khairul Adha Mat Amin said the wild elephant had entered the village from the nearby Lata Rek Forest Reserve in search of food.
“We used tranquilisers to capture the elephant when it entered a local’s garden looking for food,” he told reporters.
The five-hour capture and transfer operation of the 2.5-tonne wild elephant to Taman Negara, Pahang involved 25 personnel from the Kelantan Perhilitan, who were assisted by members from the Kuala Gandah NECC.
The team also used two female elephants, named “Rambai” and “Abot”, as decoys to lure the 30-year-old wild elephant away.
“We believe there are nine or 10 more wild elephants from the same herd located at the nearby forest reserve based on information from villagers,” Mohamad Khairul said.
According to him, the encroachment was likely due to the destruction of the elephants’ natural habitat, adding that Perhilitan constantly monitors such situations and takes immediate action whenever a report of wildlife encroachment into human areas are lodged.
He also urged locals not to act on their own if they were to come across wild elephants but to report the sightings to Perhilitan instead. — Bernama
