Wild elephants have been driven to wander into villages in the Myanmar’s mountainous Rakhine state due to the destruction of forested areas and scarcity of water.
Last week, one group of the animals was spotted drinking from gutters at the side of the Yangon-Sittwe highway; another walked up to Myebon and Minbya Township villages looking for banana plants.
“Wild elephants are arriving in areas populated with humans,” Thet Naing Oo, an official from the Department of Environmental Conservation and Forestry, told the Global New Light of Myanmar. “It’s the second time our department has witnessed such events this year.”
Most of the cases involve baby elephants who have been split up for their families, he said.
Shwe Kyar Aung, a retired teacher from Minbya, called on the government to “urgently” carry out conservation efforts.
“There’s little food for wild elephants along the Rakhine mountain range,” he said.
