Why elephants traveled 500 kilometers, scientists mobilized to find out

China's herd of 15 Asian elephants has been attracting international attention for weeks due to the fact that the herd has traveled a distance of 500 km in the last one year away from its natural habitat. Scientists, on the other hand, are trying to understand the reason for this giant animal's unusual behavior.

The elephants began their journey in the area of ​​Zhuang Bana National Nature Reserve, located on the border of Myanmar and Laos. The elephants were last seen near the city of Yoshi, where traces of their journey south have been found.

It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.

Scientist Sreedhar Vijayakrishnan, head of the Center for Wildlife Studies in the Indian city of Bangalore, said the apparently pointless journey of the elephants could be due to human intervention or the search for other resources.

Vijayakrishnan told The Independent: "It looks like they've left the Zhuang Bana Rain Forest, which could be the reason for human activity in this humid area. Their destination may be the arid regions of Greece, but it may be the result of the group's ignorance.

"These are long-lived animals and should have been investigated long ago to see what was happening to them," he said. At the moment we can only speculate.

According to a recent study of Asian elephants found on the Indian Plateau in the journal Current Science, the annual depletion of forest resources and the resources available in elephant habitats, human-animal conflicts The increase is linked to changing the living conditions of elephants in these areas.

Anoop NR, a co-author from the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) in Bangalore, told The Independent: And elephants are very sensitive to their particular habitat and in this regard, they also compete over the forest area.

Regarding this herd of elephants roaming in China, Anoop says that when another herd of elephants took over the area, it could be a source of competition for important resources like water during difficult times.

He added that in such a situation, the herd that cannot compete with the powerful elephants disintegrates and sets out in search of a new home for itself. It is a common thing that happens everywhere, even in southern India.

The herd of elephants follows the principle of female elephant rule and includes the female elephants with whom the male elephants mate for a short time before departure. There are three male elephants in the herd, which Searching for food during the journey, one can be seen sleeping in the forest and bathing in the canals along the way.

"There is nothing unusual about that," said Vijaya Krishnan. Male elephants are also part of this social group. It is a different matter that when they become sexually mature, they leave the herd and start living with or apart from other male elephants, and they do so until they become socially mature.

"Whether or not these male elephants are associated with this group cannot be ascertained," he added. We have to determine after genetic analysis that they belong to the same group. If they do not belong to this group, it will be interesting to see how and on what occasion they are associated with this group.

China currently hosts more than 300 endangered species worldwide. Researchers on animal conservation and their behavior are interested in finding out what the next destination of this herd will be.

"Asian elephants face a variety of threats that are causing a general change in their attitudes to travel and eating," says Vijayakrishnan.

They say that in crop areas, these animals have been seen resting all day while they prefer nighttime for food, although in their natural habitat, these mammals are known to eat during the day.

The CWS scientist said: "Human intervention is changing their basic attitudes drastically, and the situation in China could be an example of how elephants are changing compared to the current ecological age." How do you react?