China News Service, Kunming, March 6 (Reporter Hu Yuanhang) How are the Asian elephants who traveled north in Yunnan after returning to the south?

Chen Fei, director of the Asian Elephant Research Center of the State Forestry and Grassland Administration of China, revealed in an interview with a reporter from China News Agency on the 6th that the elephant group entered the Wild Elephant Valley in Xishuangbanna on February 5, and has been living stably in the original habitat and in good condition. .

　　In 2021, the trip of a group of wild Asian elephants in Yunnan to "going to the north and returning to the south" has aroused "onlookers" from all over the world.

They entered Kunming all the way north from their habitat in Xishuangbanna, and were escorted by the local government and people.

Later, with the joint efforts of many departments, they returned to their traditional habitats safely.

During the 17-month journey, the group of elephants crossed more than half of Yunnan and traveled about 1,300 kilometers in a circuitous way. On the way, they gave birth to a baby elephant, which sparked an upsurge of national elephant viewing.

　　Chen Fei introduced that on September 10, 2021, after the elephant herd returned to the traditional habitat of Pu'er City for a period of time, from October 30, 2021, from Simao District, Pu'er City, it entered Puwen Town, Xishuangbanna, and then on December 9 of that year. Officially returned to the "hometown" Mengyang area of ​​Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve.

At around 17:40 on February 5, 2022, the elephant group entered the Wild Elephant Valley in Xishuangbanna for the first time after returning from the south, and has been active here ever since.

　　"Elephant herds have been stably living in their original habitats since they moved north to the south, and have not seen any adverse effects. They are in good condition." Chen Fei revealed that three of the baby elephants have grown up a lot, are practicing survival skills, and have A certain ability to live independently.

　　The reporter learned that at present, there are still many elephant herds living in the Mengyang area of ​​Xishuangbanna, including the returning elephant herds that have moved from the north to the south.

In order to better protect Asian elephants, local departments cooperated, and the target group carried out 24-hour uninterrupted real-time monitoring, and timely reminded villagers to avoid them in advance.

　　In addition, the construction of the Asian Elephant National Park is also progressing steadily.

The national park will further enhance the protection and security capabilities of Asian elephants by integrating and optimizing the existing habitat range and establishing a unified protection management system. It is expected to be successfully established in 2025.

　　Data show that since the 1980s, the number of Asian elephants operating in Yunnan has increased from about 150 to about 300 now.

But on a global scale, due to illegal hunting and habitat loss, the number of Asian elephants has dropped by 90% in the past 100 years.

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