Perhilitan officers use three tranquilliser shots to relocate grieving mother elephant of calf killed in Gerik accident to Royal Belum state park

KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 — A grieving female elephant had to be tranquilised three times before officers could relocate her from the scene of a fatal accident involving her calf on the Gerik-Jeli East-West Highway (JRTB).

According to the New Straits Times, the elephant refused to leave her calf’s body after it was struck by a lorry on May 11.

“It was a risky, heartbreaking situation as the mother elephant refused to move away from the lorry,” said Gerik Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) assistant wildlife officer Ahmad Syawaludin Mohamed Gani.

“We were also moved by the affection shown by the animal. But our actions were carried out with caution. Although the mother elephant seemed calm, her natural instincts still made her potentially aggressive. Anything could happen,” he said.

The first tranquilliser dose of 8 millilitres was administered at 4am, about two hours after the accident occurred. After 15 minutes, the elephant remained alert and restless.

Officers gave her a second shot of 5 millilitres at 4.30am, but she continued to resist sedation.

A third shot, also 5 millilitres, was administered at 5am.

Not long after that, the elephant finally appeared calm and stable.

A team of six Perhilitan officers managed to relocate the elephant using four four-wheel-drive vehicles.

Perak Perhilitan director Yusoff Shariff said tracking data later confirmed that the elephant rejoined a herd and returned to the Royal Belum State Park.

“She may have previously returned to the accident site, but due to her relatively young age (estimated between 25 and 27 years), she was able to easily rejoin a herd of other elephants,” he said.

“This information brings some relief, as we were also concerned about the safety risks for users of the route.

“This is because elephants are known to be quite vengeful and have excellent memory. Elephants can remember certain individuals,” he added.

Yusoff said elephants live lifespans that are nearly similar to humans.

He said male elephants reach maturity around 19 to 20 years, while females begin mating at about 14 to 15 years.

He said, “A baby elephant usually remains with its mother until it is around nine or ten years old.”

The calf in this incident was only five years old.

Unlike females, which move in herds, mature male elephants tend to travel alone.

Yusoff estimated that there are more than 2,000 elephants in Peninsular Malaysia.