Carcasses of 38 Sumatran Elephants Found in Acacia Forest

Pekanbaru, Riau (Antara) - During the last two years, around 38 endangered Sumatran elephants have been found dead in the vicinity of an acacia forest, noted a spokesman Syamsidar of World World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Indonesia in Riau region. "In 2013, 15 elephants have been found dead, mostly in the industrial forest area," Syamsidar stated here on Thursday. He revealed that the carcasses of the elephants were found in the natural forests and forest industries adjoining the Tesso Nilo National Park (TNNP). During the period between January and October 2014, he remarked that around 23 elephants have been found dead in deplorable conditions. Syamsidar pointed out that, about 19 of the 23 elephants, were found dead in the concession area adjacent to TNNP. The carcasses of the other three elephants were found in the plantation area of PT Arara Abadi. The company was a distributor of raw material (wood) to PT Indah Kiat Pulp and Paper (IKPP), a subsidiary of the Sinar Mas Group, he reported. The Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology had earlier conducted a research based on the elephants' fecal samples. The research revealed that only 73 elephants were left in TNNP. "But, it is not the final result as out of the total 225 elephant fecal samples we had sent, only about 108 samples had been investigated," Syamsidar noted. (*)