ELEPHANT HUMAN CONFLICT

 

Sri Lanka Human – Elephant Conflict

Sri Lanka have ten to twenty percent of the Asian elephant population; the density is higher than any other state in this region. A land area of nearly five square kilometers is needed to support an elephant to make sure the natural balance that exists between the elephant and the dry zone habitats is not disturbed. According to this data, to current population of 3,500 elephants requires around 17,500 km2   or 27 per cent of the total land area while the protected areas in Sri Lanka covers only 12.5 per cent of the land area (or 8,200 km2). This indicates that nature parks and reserves are not able to ensure the sustainable prevalence of these beings and sustainable solutions are needs and to reach the prevailing solutions and the political willingness is the most necessary factor.

The lack of sufficient land area for existence of elephants is the foremost reason for human elephant conflicts. Droughts, floods and other climate change related incidents have been intensifying the conflicts in Sri Lanka while Sri Lanka has been ranked as the riskiest country for climate changes in 2018, according to global climate risk index.

Centuries ago, elephants were widely distributed from the sea level to the highest mountain ranges. Portuguese complained of elephants approaching their fortress in Colombo in the evenings. From early 19th century, British rulers sold the upcountry forest lands for commercial plantations of coffee, and afterwards tea. 

The Sri Lankan elephant population is now largely restricted to lowlands in the dry zone, east and southeast. Elephants are present in wild life reserves and a small remnant population exists in the Peak Wilderness Sanctuary. Apart from Wilpattu and Ruhuna National Parks, all other protected regions are less than 1,000 km2 in extent. Many areas are less than 50km2, and not large enough to encompass the entire home ranges of elephants that use them. 

With the reduction of their habitats, elephant population have broken up and some herds have got pocketed in small patches of jungle. With their movement restricted, food and water sources depleted, elephants wander into new cultivated areas, which were their former habitat, in search of food and find a ready source of food and even stored paddy is not spared.

Causes of conflict       

• The conflict between the two parties is due to the food shortage to the elephants caused by:

• Reducing forest area due to development works

• The rape of the forests

• Villagers encroaching into forests

• Grasslands being used by farmers’ cattle 

• Low forest quality