A herd of wild Asian elephants has roamed southwestern China since leaving their home in the forest of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture.
They now roam the outskirts of Yunnan's provincial capital, Kunming, a city home to about eight and a half million people.
500 kilometers later, these animals are accompanied by a personal protective team, whose efforts include blocking traffic, delivering food and evacuating neighbors who get too close.
Along the way, the gigantic animals have passed through several counties and, occasionally, they have entered towns and cities. To protect both the elephants and the inhabitants, the relevant departments have mobilized hundreds of police officers, as well as more than 100 vehicles, plus drone video surveillance teams. “Yesterday they reached the nearby mountain at around 9:00 pm. The village chief asked us to be vigilant and not go out, ”said Zhang, a neighbor from Shuanghe County.
Asian elephants are under level A state protection in China, where they are mainly found in Yunnan. Thanks to intensified protection efforts, the wild elephant population in the province has risen to around 300, compared to 193 in the 1980s. Although the reason for the displacement of elephant herds is unclear, the The official Xinhua news agency claimed that the decline of edible plants in forest habitats has put pressure on the animals.
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