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Sumatran
Elephant
CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
11x9''
- SOLD -
The Sumatran elephant is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant, and can only be found on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Reaching heights over 10 ft and weighing almost 9,000 lbs, it is the biggest land animal in Indonesia. Females are usually smaller than males and rarely have tusks, but the females that do keep them hidden away in their mouths. They love to roam the luscious lowland forests of Sumatra and are strictly herbivorous, consuming over 300 lbs of plant matter each day. Sumatran elephants feed on a variety of plants and deposit seeds wherever they go, contributing to a healthy forest ecosystem. Thanks to their large size, they are able to transform their habitat by tearing down trees. This creates gaps in the forest, allowing smaller animals to move around, and sunlight to reach the forest floor. The trunk of a Sumatran elephant contains over 60,000 muscles and is one of the most distinctive features of their body. The trunk is very sensitive and used for everything from breathing, feeding, touching, dusting, watering, grasping, defense, washing, pinching, communication and sound production.
The Sumatran elephant has been labeled as Critically Endangered, as the population had declined by at least 80% during the past three generations (about 75 years). The subspecies is preeminently threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, and poaching. Forest fires, human resettlement, logging, timber estates, plantations, agriculture expansion, shifting cultivation, and road building are the most common causes of fragmentation and degradation of elephant habitat. As a result, the number of conflicts between elephants and humans is increasing every year. Sumatran elephants prefer areas of low elevation and gentler slopes, including those along the river and mountain valleys; humans also prefer these same features, which results in competition between elephants and humans for the same space, and at all times leads to a loss of preferred elephant habitat. Also, crop protection efforts, which mainly consist of chasing elephants out of crop fields or moving them deeper into the forest away from the crops, has restricted access for elephants to these areas. Almost 70% of potential elephant habitat has been lost within the last 25 years. Much of the remaining forest cover is in blocks smaller than 100 sq mi, which are too small to contain viable elephant populations. In addition to conflict related death, elephants are also targets of poaching for their ivory.
The current captive population of about 400 elephants is maintained in six Elephant Training Centers (ETCs) located throughout Sumatra. Here, elephants are "domesticated" and ostensibly trained for use in forestry, agriculture, or tourism. Some centers offer rides and shows to the visiting public. Although some elephants have been trained for use in the logging industry, the demand for elephants to work in this capacity has fallen short of expectations. ETCs can help to generate tourism/support (and, in turn, resources for the Sumatran elephant as well as the community and its people) and can also serve as a rehabilitation center for previously abused elephants, but, unfortunately, they aren’t always ideal for the elephants; and even some organizations that claim to be sanctuaries can be problematic. Some general problems that confront the ETCs are that there is often insufficient food for elephants, funds are lacking for veterinary supplies & facilities, wages for mahouts are low, the centers tend to be at or over capacity, and some facilities still engage in unethical practices. Seemingly innocent interactions with elephants could actually be very troublesome. Even bathing elephants is oftentimes stressful for the elephants, especially when dealing with groups of excited people. And despite how strong elephants look, elephant riding can cause permanent spinal injuries and depression. Their spines cannot support the weight of people, so doing so frequently can lead to permanent spinal injuries. Ethical wildlife sanctuaries care for animals that have been rescued from abusive situations. The end goal should be to release them again in the wild, and if the animals are too traumatized or injured to ever return to the wild again they should live in the camp with as much freedom as possible and little human contact. There shouldn’t be physical contact between visitors and elephants, so ethical elephant camps would ideally work on an observation-only model. This still provides jobs and a valuable income to local people while it genuinely helps elephants in need.
Unfortunately there are a lot of shady sanctuaries, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find an ethical sanctuary to visit or support. Do your own research and make sure your elephant experience is not harming he elephants you’re looking to support. Ignore organization’s self-labeling and beware that even tour agencies do not always know. A great place to start is to check if the elephant sanctuary you’re thinking of visiting is accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. Also, read reviews and contact the sanctuary with a lot of questions (i.e. Do the elephants perform for visitors? Can visitors feed, wash, ride or touch elephants? Are the baby elephants separated at times from their mother? Are the elephants chained? Are the elephants bought (instead of rescued)? Do they use bullhooks against elephants in any circumstances?) Any ‘yes’ responses to these questions could be a red flag. Despite thorough research it's still possible to end up supporting an unethical sanctuary and if that's the case, help fellow travelers by leaving a review and posting photos or videos. In some cases it will even motivate the camps to improve their practices.
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