The Tenkasi Forest Division is using traditional and scientific methods to stop wild elephants from entering ranches during December and January. Officials installed AI cameras and repaired solar fences to prevent crop damage. "The damaged or defunct solar electric fences have been identified and repaired," said officer R. Rajmohan.
As wild elephant invasion into ranches close to the Western Ghats increases sharply during December and January, the Tenkasi Forest Division is gearing-up to neutralise this issue that would always result in hefty crop damage by adopting traditional and scientific strategies.
The Tenkasi Forest Division, after identifying vulnerable porous points, through which the wild elephants usually enter the ranches from the Western Ghats, has installed AI-enabled elephant monitoring cameras for getting real-time alerts so that the forest personnel's rapid response teams can arrive at the spot to send the gentle giants back into the forest. Besides averting crop damage, the measure is expected to avoid man - animal conflict.
Apart from the AI-enabled cameras, the forest department has reposed its faith in solar-powered electric fences and trenches, the traditional way of stopping the infiltration of elephants into the fields. have been dug at vulnerable points being traditionally used by the elephant herds to enter the fields from the jungles.
"The damaged or defunct solar electric fences have been identified and repaired to keep them operational ahead of the season of invasion," District Forest Officer R. Rajmohan told The Hindu on Friday.
Since movement of elephant herds to other parts of the Western Ghats would also be on the rise during this season, monitoring of elephant movement has been intensified along the railway tracks which are traditionally being used by the elephants to reach their destinations.
In a bid to retain the elephants in their area itself, the Forest Department recently launched an exercise to remove invasive Lantana and restore these places with native grass species and indigenous trees, which are close to the hearts of wild elephants. Moreover, wild banana and fruit-bearing species have also been planted to enhance food availability in various parts of the Western Ghats, particularly along the tracts being traditionally used by the wild elephants.
As part of the native species conservation and research, studies on propagation of indigenous plant species, scientific research on native species endemic to the Western Ghats are going on with the collaboration of research institutions for ecological restoration.
"This research is being done to increase the availability of food for wild elephant, deer, Indian gaur etc. inside the forest. We've repaired the damaged check-dams, ponds and waterholes in various points of the Western Ghats to store water during the Northeast monsoon so that the elephants will not come out of the forest in search of water even during next summer. The wild streams bringing water to the ponds have been restored and we hope all ponds would be overflowing during this season," Dr. Rajmohan hoped.
The DFO also said they have kept ready a well-trained team to reunite abandoned elephant calves with their mothers after searching for them with drones.
"We're planning to create a 24 X 7 integrated wildlife monitoring control room which will continue to receive photos and videos from the AI-enabled cameras. While this will ensure real-time intervention by our personnel in case of any wild animal invasion into the field or habitat, it will also keep the intruders getting into the forest for their nefarious activities at bay," Dr. Rajmohan said.
Since community participation alone can spell the success of wildlife conservation, the recently launched Friends of Elephants through which the villagers were sensitized on the need for protecting wildlife has proved to be very effective as the forest personnel get immediate alert from the villagers about wild animal invasion or the suspicious movements of strangers close along forest boundaries or inside the forest.
"So, these scientific and traditional measures have collectively started yielding desired results in the past few months. We hope that these practices would also effectively check the wild animal invasion into the ranches during coming months," Dr. Rajmohan said.