Wild Sumatran elephants destroy home in West Lampung village

West Lampung, Lampung (ANTARA) - A herd of wild Sumatran elephants (Elephas maximus sumatranus) encroached on Sidorejo village, Suoh sub-district, West Lampung, Lampung, on Monday, destroying a house, according to a local government official.

At least 18 wild elephants entered the village's residential area around 1 a.m., said Sugeng Hari Kinaryo Adi, an officer with the wild elephant task force for Suoh and Bandar Negeri Suoh.

He said that one of the Sumatran elephants had been collared with a GPS tracking device on July 19. The task force personnel managed to easily track the elephants' movement and drive them away from the residential area.

Earlier, on June 24, a herd of wild Sumatran elephants was also sighted in the Talang Daiyah residential area of Sidorejo village. They destroyed the farmlands of several residents of the area.

The Indonesian government has listed Sumatran elephants among the critically endangered mammals in the country.

Over the past few years, human-elephant conflicts have become a major conservation concern in several provinces in Sumatra, including Lampung and Aceh.

In Aceh, at least 14 herds of wild Sumatran elephants were found wandering in search of food in the areas of districts such as Tamiang, Pidie, Central Aceh, Bener Meriah, and Bireuen in February 2019.

As per figures published on the official website of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the population of Sumatran elephants is estimated to be about 2,400–2,800 individuals.

The world's leading organization on wildlife conservation and endangered species has said that ivory can still be found in markets around Africa and Asia, as well as in the United States and Europe.

The WWF has noted that poaching for the illegal ivory trade remains a serious threat to the lives of wild elephants in several countries.