A haven for elephants
The lost, orphaned and injured are well taken care of at the Uda
Walawe Elephant Transit Home
The largest land animal on the planet, the elephant, is loved and
adored by many of us. However, during the recent past with the increase
of the population, many elephants have lost their habitats ( living
spaces) and food sources. Therefore, they come to villages looking for
food.
This has created a conflict between humans and elephants. A large
number of elephants and humans have died as a result. Some elephants,
especially baby elephants lose their parents and become orphaned. We
cannot let these little ones die. Keeping this tragic situation in mind,
the Department of Wild Life Conservation initiated a pilot project in
1995 to take care of the elephants that are in need of help and later
release them back into the wild when they are ready.
'Ath Athuru Sevana' or the 'Elephant Transit Home' was built on a
22-hecatare land with the sole objective of saving our endangered
elephants.And do you know who the first resident of this transit home
was? An elephant named 'Komali',found from Meegallawa, Galgamuwa.
Today there are 43 elephants between the ages of two months to five
years at this home. Since the inception, around 73 orphaned, lost or
injured elephants had been found from various parts of the country .
When such elephants are brought to the home, the transit home
officials take good care of them before releasing them back into the
wild. So, to date 73 elephants have found their new homes in the various
wild life parks such as Udawalawa, Maduruoya and Lunugamwehera. Of
these, the majority had been released to Udwalwawa National Park , as it
is the closest and also has enough resources for the elephants to roam
and grow up freely.
"We find orphaned baby elephants from all around the country. These
elephants can be orphaned due to an injury or death to the mother or as
a result of straying from their herd.
Some small elephants which get along with the buffaloes in the
vicinity are in the habit of walking around with these buffalo herds ,"
said the veterinary surgeon at the Elephant Transit Home, Dr. Udaya
Kumara.
"As soon as we find these elephants , we check whether they need any
emergency medication. Thereafter we take good care of them until they
are strong and old enough to live on their own ," he added.
According to Dr. Kumara adult elephants are fed milk every three
hours and baby elephants every two hours. A veterinary surgeon and other
officials work round the clock (24 hours a day) to take care of them.
"Sometime these little elephants behave like children .They fight
with each other and injure themselves . Then we need to treat them and
give them medication. They also suffer from stomachaches and phlegm
problems just like human babies. Therefore, we need to be vigilant about
them all the time," said the senior veterinary surgeon at the home, Dr.
B. Vijitha Perera.
Even though they are big in size, their behaviour and needs are very
similar to those of an infant. Someone has to keep an eye on them all
the time. However, it is strictly prohibited for anyone to pet these
little ones, unlike at the elephant orphanage at Pinnawela.
You may think it is strange or cruel to do so because these baby
elephants are so cute nad lovable. But the authorities have a very good
reason for doing this.'These elephants are not going to be at the Home
for their entire life. They have to be released into the wild, so they
need to get used to the life in the wild. “Therefore, we make sure that
human contact is at a minimum. We never pet them," said Dr. Kumara.
Once these elephants reach the age of four or five years they are
released to the wild. At this point, home officials fix a radio belt or
collar with a transmitter, around the neck of the elephant.
By this the officials can identify the location of these elephants
once they are back in the wild.They closely monitor the elephants
released from the transit home for a period of three years. During this
time, their behaviour and the way they adapt to the wild is observed.
"When we release these elephants to the wild, some of them tend to
return to the home, and then we have no other option than relocating
them to another national park," explained Dr. Kumara.
These giants pachyderms are maintained mainly by Government funds.
However, people who love elephants can contribute to the well-being of
these majestic animals, threatened with extinction today.
The Elephant Transit Home also has a 'foster parent' scheme. An
organization or a person too can become a foster parent to anyone of
these elephants.
These foster parents pay Rs. 25,000 per month to maintain an
elephant. Musaeus College, Colombo is also the foster parent to an
elephant named Kanthali at the home.
The Wild Life Conservation Project of the school holds various
fund-raising campaigns to collect this amount.
The public, yes even you can contribute any amount as a general
donation for the development of this one and only elephant transit home
we have in Sri Lanka.
Janani AMARASEKERA
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Fact File
*There are two main species of elephants; African elephants and Asian
elephants. The African elephants are taller and heavier than Asian
elephants. Their ears too are larger than those of the Asian elephant.
*The World Conservations Union lists the Asian elephant as an
endangered species
*Asian elephants are social animals and live in groups of 15-40
individuals of related females and their young. The group leader is the
oldest and largest female known as the matriach of the herd.
*There are three sub species of Asian elephants; Sri Lankan elephant,
Indian elephant and the , Sumatran elephant.The Sri Lankan elephant is
the largest of the three sub-species of the Asian elephant.It weighs
between 3-5 tonnes at maturity.
*The life-span of elephants is very similar to that of humans; living
to between 60 and 70 years. In the wild,the Asian elephants live up to
60 years.
*Elephants are herbivores and therefore they only eat grasses, herbs,
fruit, plants and trees.
*Their brain weighs about 4-6 kg .
*Females can give birth to as many as 12 offspring and generally
start breeding atthe age of 15/16 years.The gestation (pregnancy) period
is 22 months.
*They can walk up to 195 km per day, although the average distance
they walk is only 25 km.
* They can acieve speeds of 40mph when moving .
*Elephant have six sets of teeth that grow throughout their lives one
set after the other . By the time they reach their 50s, most elephants
have started to use their final set. |