Footage of an Indian elephant entering the grounds of an army base, in West Bengal, has been released.
The majestic creature was looking for food, and in response to seeing the elephant, Army officials can be heard blaring warning sirens to keep personnel away.
They then drove out the visitor with firecrackers.
The Binnaguri cantonment nursing Army Medical Corps is nestled among tea gardens and forests in the foothills of western Bhutan, and the lush green foliage, fruit trees and grass, are said to attract elephants from the surrounding forests.
An official who was there when the elephant came in, said:
Two years ago an entire herd had entered the campus and even killed a contract worker.
We are used to elephants and know how to deal with them. There is not much human-animal conflict in this area.
Check out the footage below:
In other elephant-related news, earlier this year, an image of an adult elephant and it’s calf being set on fire by a mob, won a top Asian wildlife photography award.
The sickening image shows the two wild animals running away from a crowd, as people hurled flaming balls of tar and crackers at them.
Taken by Biplab Hazra, the photo titled: ‘Hell is here’, was captured in the Bankura district of West Bengal, where human-elephant conflict is said to be rife.
In a statement accompanying the photo, Biplab said:
For these smart, gentle, social animals who have roamed the subcontinent for centuries, hell is now and here.
is frequently found that people dwelling near forest take resort to various methods which disturb the wild animals & make them ferocious to take revenge.
70 per cent of the world’s population of Asian elephants live in India, but the conflict between them and local people result in up to 300 human deaths and 50 elephant deaths per year.
This conflict is largely based on crop raiding because elephants may prefer feeding on crops compared to wild forage because of their higher nutritive content and palatability.
Proportionally, the elephant’s brain is the most sizeable, at a mass of just over 5kg and according to Elephants Forever, the need for such a large and complex organ becomes clear when we consider the behaviours and abilities of these animals.
Elephants are capable of such a wide range of complex emotions, including joy, playfulness, grief and mourning.
In addition, elephants are able to learn new facts and behaviours, mimic sounds they hear, self-medicate, perform artistic activities and display compassion and self-awareness.
The staggering capacity of the elephant brain is beautifully demonstrated through the story of Thongsri, a 17-year-old elephant who lives in a sanctuary in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Thongsri clearly harbours a sincere affection and loyalty to her care taker, shown in a touching video which has since gone viral.
The care taker was pretend-fighting with a companion when Thongsri came running over, determined to protect him from any potential threats.
Poor Thongsri looked seriously worried as she stooped down on her knees to check everything was okay, circling the care taker protectively.
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