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Preserving Bornean elephant and orangutan habitat

Using tracking collars on elephants to reduce human-wildlife conflict.

05/06/2024

Mitigating human-elephant conflict

WWF-Malaysia requested our vet, Dr Yohind, to assist in their efforts to mitigate human-elephant conflict. The task was to fit a special tracking collar on an adult Bornean pygmy elephant living in and around the rainforest of Tabin Reserve. These collars transmit data that allows WWF to monitor the elephants’ movements.

After several days of trekking through the jungle, the team finally located the herd and identified a suitable female elephant. Once she was sedated, they had to act fast to fit the collar around her neck, to ensure her and the team’s safety. The procedure went smoothly, and the female was soon back up on her feet and reunited with her herd.

For the next few days, the team continued to track the elephants to ensure all was well and that the collar was working correctly.

Wild adult female Bornean pygmy elephant with a tracking collar moving through the rainforest in Borneo.

The data collected is crucial for understanding the elephants’ migration patterns, habitat use and interactions with human-inhabited areas. By analysing this information, WWF can look to implement strategies to prevent conflicts.

Conflicts can take various forms, impacting both communities and wildlife. These include elephants raiding crops and causing damage to property, fencing and water tanks. Encounters with elephants can result in injury or worse, leading to fear and frustration among local residents.

The expansion of human settlements, infrastructure such as new roads, and agricultural activities into wildlife habitats severely impacts the natural environment of elephants, orangutans and many other species, leading to increased confrontations. Understanding these conflicts is essential to promoting coexistence and protecting wildlife.

Also supporting these efforts were teams from Sabah Wildlife Department and the Wildlife Rescue Unit (WRU). Collaborations such as this, are incredibly important in conservation efforts, allowing us to pool resources and share knowledge.

With only 1,000 Bornean elephants left in the wild, they have been classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™.

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