CONSERVATION
Surrey’s Premier Lifestyle Magazine
Sri Lanka... keeping it wild
The Serendib isle, in conjunction with international wildlife charity Born Free, rescues orphan elephants and cares for them in its Elephant Transit Home until they are ready to return to the wild. essence found out more about this successful and life-saving project.
Sri Lanka is home to a particular subspecies of elephant unique to the island. The elephant orphanage project at Pinnawala, set up in 1975, was the subject of a report by the Born Free Foundation in 2010 that called into question the animals’ welfare. Of primary concern was that the elephants became dependent on supplied food and too used to humans therefore making them unable to return to the wild.
A new initiative supported by the Foundation in Sri Lanka is now having greater success reintroducing orphaned elephants into their natural environment.
The Elephant Transit Home in Sri Lanka is run by the Department of Wildlife Conservation. It rescues orphan elephants and returns them to the wild when ready, providing a humane alternative to taking abandoned animals into permanent captivity.
The Born Free Foundation supports the general running of the Transit Home and helps make sure the orphans receive the milk, care and medical attention they need. With the help of sponsors, including elephant.co.uk and Land Rover, Born Free has provided the Home with life-saving facilities and equipment such as a hospital and intensive care centre, an elephant ambulance and a kitchen. It has also funded research on the behaviour of the orphans after release, radio collars to assist in monitoring them and basic equipment for staff at the Transit Home from Wellington boots to mosquito nets.
When ready, the elephants are released into Udawalawe National Park, which the Transit Home borders, and radio collars monitor their integration back into the herds within the Park. If there are any problems, the elephants are taken back into care for a further period and then released at a later date to try again.
Kuoni Travel has a selection of wildlife safari tours to Sri Lanka, including visits to the Elephant Transit Home and Udawalawe National Park. See www.kuoni.co.uk for further details.
A new initiative supported by the Foundation in Sri Lanka is now having greater success reintroducing orphaned elephants into their natural environment.
The Elephant Transit Home in Sri Lanka is run by the Department of Wildlife Conservation. It rescues orphan elephants and returns them to the wild when ready, providing a humane alternative to taking abandoned animals into permanent captivity.
The Born Free Foundation supports the general running of the Transit Home and helps make sure the orphans receive the milk, care and medical attention they need. With the help of sponsors, including elephant.co.uk and Land Rover, Born Free has provided the Home with life-saving facilities and equipment such as a hospital and intensive care centre, an elephant ambulance and a kitchen. It has also funded research on the behaviour of the orphans after release, radio collars to assist in monitoring them and basic equipment for staff at the Transit Home from Wellington boots to mosquito nets.
When ready, the elephants are released into Udawalawe National Park, which the Transit Home borders, and radio collars monitor their integration back into the herds within the Park. If there are any problems, the elephants are taken back into care for a further period and then released at a later date to try again.
Kuoni Travel has a selection of wildlife safari tours to Sri Lanka, including visits to the Elephant Transit Home and Udawalawe National Park. See www.kuoni.co.uk for further details.
