Jakarta - Two wild elephants went on a rampage in Lampung
province on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, trampling an elderly
resident to death, state-run media reported Monday.
The elephants entered the Belimbing Bengkurat village early
Saturday, trampling 70-year-old Punirah, said Kurnia Rauf, head of
the Bukit Barisan National Park.
Rauf was quoted as saying by the state-run Antara news agency that
the wild elephants ran amok after they strayed from their herd and
into the human settlement.
Elephants are migrating from the national park to other places
during the current transitional season, he said.
The two beasts were angered when local residents tried to drive
them away and attacked Punirah, Rauf said. The settlement is along
the traditional elephant migration path.
Conservationists said widespread destruction of elephant habitat
through illegal logging and uncontrolled conversion of forests into
oil palm and pulp plantations has created intense conflict between
humans and elephants, which are forced to feed on the crops that
replaced their natural foods.
Human-animal conflicts are a rising problem as human settlements
encroach on natural habitats in Indonesia, an archipelago nation with
some of the world's largest remaining tropical forests.
Habitat destruction, combined with illegal poaching have slashed
the population of Sumatra's wild elephants.
According to environmentalists, about 4,000 wild elephants roam
Sumatra, the only island in Indonesia where they can still be found.
They are listed as an endangered species and protected by law.
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