WWF rescue operation

Animal rights activists watch over elephants with drones

(Bild: David Lawson / WWF-UK)

Habitat destruction, greed for ivory and heartless poachers are making life difficult for elephants around the world. In Southeast Asia, a new rescue operation is now underway with a lot of high-tech and emergency teams.

Criminal networks are making the protection of elephants an international challenge. In order to stop poaching, it is necessary to expand the protected areas of the pachyderms worldwide and to control them rigorously," said WWF species protection expert Georg Scattolin to the "Krone".

The animal drama is also rooted in the fact that tropical forests and savannahs are increasingly being destroyed by human settlements and agricultural land. As a result, the elephants' habitats are shrinking. This in turn forces the pachyderms to look for food sources in farms, settlements and plantations. In the process, they destroy human property and are killed in retaliation.

It is good to see that our work is successful. This encourages us to work towards a better coexistence between humans and elephants

WWF-Artenschutzexperte Georg Scattolin zur Kronen Zeitung

"Conflicts with humans are common. That is why it is crucial to work closely with the local population and draw attention to the important functions of elephants for the entire ecosystem," says Scattolin, pointing out a way forward.

Population halved from 100,000 to 50,000
His biggest problem children in the truest sense of the word are the wild Asian elephants - whose population has halved from around 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century to 50,000. In Thailand's Kuiburi National Park, an early warning system consisting of real-time wildlife cameras, thermal drones and GPS trackers will help to monitor the elephants' movements. A mobile team, which is available around the clock, chases the animals away if they get too close. This has already led to the first touching ecological successes.