Concern over worsening wild elephant behaviour after durian farm raided in Prachuap

[webfact]

Concern over worsening wild elephant behaviour after durian farm raided
By Wimon Tabkong,
Apichart Hongsakul
The Nation

 

 

PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN: -- Wild elephants have raided a durian plantation in Prachuap Khiri Khan’s Hua Hin district, causing a local farmer more than Bt200,000 in damage.

 

“They ate all the durian I expected to sell on June 10,” Pratuang Numnoi, 69, said on Sunday. “Now, I won’t have money to clear my debt with the Bank for Agriculture and Cooperatives.”

 

The elderly farmer added that wild elephants had also uprooted four of her durian trees. 

 

Tambon Huai Sat Yai Administrative Organisation chief executive Sunanta Pimtai inspected the damage at Pratuang’s orchard but said her organisation could not do much to help. 

 

“We have received complaints about damage caused by elephants almost every single day lately. But at this point we can only provide free firecrackers to local residents so that they can scare wild elephants away,” Sunanta said. 

 

She added that the next step for her organisation was to submit a report to the Prachuap Khiri Khan governor and ask for help for affected people. 

 

“We will follow up on our request for a budget to construct solid fences between the forestland and people’s farms,” she added. 

 

Manu Thongyaem, the kamnan of Tambon Huai Sat Yai, said the wild elephant population near the area had been growing, especially after many elephants had migrated from a nearby area at Tambon Padeng where fences had already been erected. 

 

Supatra Rubnusarn, a local resident in Tambon Huai Sat Yai, said she felt the elephants’ behaviour had changed for the worse. 

 

“In the past, they did not enter people’s houses. But lately, they have rummaged inside. It’s as if they eat for pleasure, not due to hunger,” she said. “All of us can see these elephants are big and fat.” 

 

Pratuang added that wild elephants had once eaten pork that she had broiled.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30316551

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-05-29

 

[soalbundy]

Invite the elephants to report to the nearest police station

[soalbundy]

These are wild elephants, wild elephants eat fruit they find in the wild, farmer plants an orchard in an area where there are wild elephants, farmer is surprised that the elephants eat his harvest, farmer is Thai.

[Borzandy]

revenge...

[geriatrickid]

Perhaps if the  locals stopped encroaching on the elephants feeding areas...............

[Phuyai]

"Elephants are a problem for some Sri Lankan villages. Young male elephants go on the rampage destroying crops.  ...

[Monash Uni Prof.] "Roger Short describes a simple nonlethal method of control. Young male elephants are terrified of the sound of dominant matriarchal elephants. Sound recordings have the young males running for the hills."

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/scienceshow/controlling-elephants-in-sri-lanka/8561768

[elgordo38]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Tambon Huai Sat Yai Administrative Organisation chief executive Sunanta Pimtai inspected the damage at Pratuang’s orchard but said her organisation could not do much to help

Rather unreassuring to say the least. Why bother making the trip. 

[exalll]

Standard procedure in such circumstances is crop insurance.

 

From Wikipedia: "In India a multiperil crop insurance called National Agriculture Insurance Scheme (NAIS) was implemented. This scheme is being implemented by Agriculture Insurance Company of India, an Indian government owned company. The scheme is compulsory for all farmers who take agricultural loans from any financial institution. It is voluntary for all other farmers. The premium is subsidized for farmers who own less than two hectares of land."

 

I also agree with the poster who suggested that the problem is related to worsening HUMAN behaviour (while not suggesting this individual framer is to blame).

[AhFarangJa]

Humans constantly encroaching into areas occupied by wild animals.....an age old story......Look at Africa......or the American mid west with the Bison.............I can see this going only one way, and it is not looking good for the Elephants........

[YetAnother]

they ate ALL the durian ?

[wakeupplease]

No elephants in this but it might make you smile!

 

Durian arrived here yesterday, we where not in, so neighbour took delivery

 

When I went to get it for the wife, neighbour says sorry about the smell but I thing my baby needs changing

 

I fell about laughing and put the box outside

 

Then asked here can you smell anything now

 

No she said.

 

Wife was banned to the garden to eat Durian and complained it was off and she not buy again.

 

The king of all stinks, or very nearly

 

True story.

[kaorop]

On 5/29/2017 at 10:54 AM, geriatrickid said:

Perhaps if the  locals stopped encroaching on the elephants feeding areas...............

there is so little flat land left for any wildlife, take a look or googl earth 13.17.04.1 102.03.56.1 and think how much encroachment is happening in this backwater