Elephants are famous travelers. Left alone they will cover hundreds of miles in their migrations and search for food. As humans occupy more and more of the Earth's surface there is less room for elephants to behave naturally. A small herd of sixteen elephants left their nature reserve in China and began an epic journey to the north. They have become instant celebrities as a growing number of concerned humans monitor their progress. The herd left the Mengyangzi Nature Reserve in southwest Yunnan in March marching north. They paused while a female gave birth to a calf, and resumed walking in April. Two elephants then abandoned the journey. Along the way, they have caused much destruction, eating whole fields of corn and smashing up barns. Now about 300 miles into their journey, they are approaching the large city of Kunming. At one point in their trek, the herd walked down a main street of Eshan village. [photo below] Authorities are scratching their heads in an attempt to keep them away from heavily populated areas. Latest reports say there is an effort to supply the elephants with food. Animal behaviorists think it unlikely they will enter the city proper. [photo: UK Guardian]
Human development has left large mammals stranded on islands of habitat. Traditional buffer zones between animals and humans have disappeared along with traditional migration routes. Wild habitat in Yunan has shrunk from about two thousand square kilometers to about 500 in recent times. The endangered elephant population has increased to 300 from 170 in 1980. The herd, composed of six female adults, three male adults, three sub-adults, and three calves, would be safer in a nature reserve, but how to convince them to return to their reservation is not immediately apparent. Authorities may be forced to find a suitable habitat at the end of their trek. No casualties have been reported so far. [photo: BBC]