Herd of elephants escape their nature reserve in China, leaving 500km ‘trail of destruction’

The herd has damaged 56 hectares of crops and caused an estimated loss of about £778,068, state media said

Akshita Jain


A herd of 15 wild elephants has wandered 500km from a nature reserve in southwestern China, leaving a trail of destruction, damaged forests and ruined crops in its wake.

Local authorities said the elephants left Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in Yunnan province last year and have passed through several counties. They have strayed into villages and in some cases clashed with humans, China’s state media reported, though no casualties have been reported so far.

It is not yet clear why the elephants, which are under state protection in China, left the nature reserve and are moving north. The herd was approaching the city of Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, on Wednesday.

China’s official Xinhua news agency said precautions have been taken and the provincial bureau of forestry and grassland has told the government of Kunming, which has a population of 7 million, to issue timely warnings to citizens.

The herd has damaged 56 hectares of crops in just the two counties of Yuanjiang and Shiping, and caused a loss of about $1.1 million (£778,068), according to Xinhua.

The animals have also drained a water tank and broken into barns, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Authorities said the group initially included 16 animals when they left the reserve near the city of Pu’er, but two returned home and a baby was born during the walk.

The elephants were seen in Yuxi on Monday. The authorities said they have established a command centre to track their movement and prevent them from entering densely populated areas.

The command centre said more than 360 people, 76 police cars and nine drones were mobilised, according to Xinhua. Images taken by drones show six female and three male adults, three juveniles and three calves.

Ecologists told state media that the reduction of suitable habitat inside their reserve is likely to have caused the herd to seek pastures new.

“The shrinking of rainforests in the elephants' home in Xishuangbanna may be a reason that led to the migration,” Zhang Li, a professor of ecology at Beijing Normal University, told state-run Global Times.

Chen Mingyong, an Asian elephant expert cited by Xinhua, said that it was the first time China recorded such long-distance northward migration of wild elephants. Chen said it was possible their leader “lacks experience and led the whole group astray”.