elephants Archives - The TrickyScribe™

The TrickyScribe: Elephants have large home ranges traveling over great distances, not just because they are copious consumers, but also they propagate seeds where ever they go, making them gardeners of forests, shaping ecosystems.

Fencing a tiger reserve, a place earmarked for wildlife, preventing their movement by forest department, entrusted with the protection of elephants is shocking, said conservationist Prern Bindra. It is unacceptable! Importantly, studies show, fences do not resolve conflicts but exacerbate it, she said.

This goes diagonally against elephant ecology; they try and find a passage, somehow. With tragic consequences, time and again! When we block elephant passages, this happens. The fencing around Nagarahole tiger reserve in Karnataka has killed the elephant, even as government and even some so-called scientists claim such fencings are harmless.

The chased down elephant from a nearby village Bharthawadi was trying to get into the forest and as unable to do so because of the fence. It died while trying to jump over the fence to get into the forest. The way we are losing, killing elephants is heart-rending. A PIL filed with Supreme Court is opposing such fencing around forests.

In this case, a poor elephant was reportedly escaping the mob of irate villagers who were chasing and hounding it, back into the forest, and was prevented by the fence leading to its torturous death. And, this is an animal we worship as Ganesha, our National Heritage Animal. So deep-rooted in our culture, held sacred, intelligent, empathetic and social yet, this is the sorry fate of our National Heritage Animal.

What are Corridors?

Corridors, in the larger space of ecological conservation, occupy a unique niche for their role and vitality in species conservation. Corridors have been generally understood to be ‘linear landscape elements, meant to establish and facilitate connectivity across habitats; increase survivorship by increasing the diversity of specific gene pools.

Wildlife corridors, used by various species to migrate, breed and feed, are increasingly becoming relevant as essential tools for wildlife conservation. Skyrocketing industrial- and infrastructural-development, especially around forests, has resulted in widespread habitat fragmentation and isolation.

Some argue that they are merely temporary-use habitat connectors, while others hold the view that they are permanent integral parts of the habitat ranges of animals. Structure and functionalities of corridors are also highly specific to the species that use them.

Seasonal migration patterns, availability of food and water requirements are completely different for tigers and elephants – and therefore the corridors connecting their habitats must be different in terms of function, form and context although the obvious function of corridors is to facilitate physical movement.

Regional Population: What makes situation grim?

Fragmented sub-populations of single species, regional populations, interact through linkages to supplement Meta population gene pool and the success of this mechanism is premised on the inviolate nature of the source populations.

There is an inherent cyclical causative nexus between scientific management of protected areas and positive effects of corridors in promoting biodiversity and sustenance of Meta populations. Omnipresent variable of human–wildlife conflict makes apparent how delicate the exercise of corridor delineation and management actually is.

What makes us protect wildlife corridors?

Need to protect wildlife corridors is increasingly gaining traction in world over making habitat fragmentation one of the biggest challenges to biodiversity conservation. Immediate and growing threats of climate change and other anthropogenic pressures on natural habitats notwithstanding, a wildlife corridor is needed as a legal tool for ecological conservation.

Difficulty stems from the very nature of a corridor, completely different in function and form, depending upon the species that is used to typify it. Their criticality in biodiversity conservation is nevertheless moot.

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The TrickyScribe: India is a land of contradictions. While elephants are considered sacred and are worshipped, on one hand, there are psychopaths who subject them to inhuman and cruel practices. They’re chained and beaten mercilessly during the course of their training for that makes them fit for being used as a “source of entertainment” in parades and safaris, where they are burdened with heavy loads and deprived of their natural habitat.

Armed with a team of 16 subject matter experts including veterinarians, wildlife biologists and researchers, Wildlife SOS is an organization that works towards rescue and rehabilitation of elephants where their mission is to provide them with natural vegetation, nutritional food and large pools to bathe. Their pursuit of saving elephants made them come across many instances potent enough of melting hearts. Click here to donate now!

Animals rescued from severe conditions suffer from physical and psychological trauma as well as chronic medical problems which require lifetime treatment. Sloth bears rescued from the dancing bear trade, for instance, face mutilation, with their teeth removed and muzzles pierced by hot iron pokers without any anesthesia.

Elephants, on the other hand, suffer from painful abscesses, arthritis and even forced blindness by their former guardians. Years of walking on hot metal roads leads some of them to severe foot ailments including worn out foot pads, overgrown nails and cuticles.

Wildlife SOS is currently embarked on a journey to rescue the elephants and they’re actively operational in Elephant Conservation & Care Centre, Mathura, Elephant Rehabilitation Center, Ban Santour, Haryana, Agra Bear Rescue Facility, Bannerghatta Bear Rescue Centre, Bengaluru, Van Vihar Bear Rescue Facility, Purulia Bear Rescue Centre, Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre, Pahalgam Rescue Centre (for Asiatic Black Bears & Himalayan Brown Bears), Dachigam Rescue Centre (for Asiatic Black Bears & Himalayan Brown Bears), Wildlife Rescue Centre, Gurgaon, Haryana, and Human Primate Conflict Mitigation Centre in Farah, Uttar Pradesh.

This requires a lot of fiscal muscles and here comes technology into the picture. Fundraisers are on! Talking to The TrickyScribe, COO & Co-Founder, ImpactGuru.com, Khushboo Jain asserted being cause-agnostic and said wildlife needs a voice. She said the standalone objective of this fundraiser was not just to raise funds for them but also to raise awareness about their rights and our responsibilities.

Khushboo extended her gratitude to the 95 donors who came out of the inertia and supported Wildlife SOS in their bid to rescuing and rehabilitating the tortured elephants. Nothing can beat the feeling of gratitude when your business has impacted not just humans alone but also animals, she said. Click here to donate now!

CEO & Co-Founder, Wildlife SOS, Kartick Satyanarayan, said, “The animals residing at our centers are mostly unfit for release into the wild as they have been brought up in a captive environment and have grown dependent on humans for survival. Moreover, they suffer from severe physical and psychological trauma and chronic medical problems which require lifetime treatment. Some have also been rescued from human-wildlife conflict situations.”

Elaborating on the rescue helplines run by Wildlife SOS, Kartick said rescue helplines are operational in Agra, Delhi and Vadodara round the clock attending to distress calls from public, police, animal lovers and like-minded organizations.

Replying to a query on the standard operating procedure followed in rescues, Kartick said the animals receive veterinary treatment in case required before being released back into wild. For this, the arrangements are made and proper permissions are acquired from the concerned authorities to release the animals into a suitable habitat. The release is done in the presence of representatives of the authorities concerned.

Injured or orphaned animals that cannot be released are given refuge at our rescue centres depending on the closest facility where their dietary requirements are met meticulously and give them adequate nutrient supplements to help regain their strength, said Kartick.

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elephants

Fences do not resolve conflicts but exacerbate it

What are Corridors?

Regional Population: What makes situation grim?

What makes us protect wildlife corridors?

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