Perhilitan seeks info on elephant hurt by trap in Kluang plantation

The Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia (Perhilitan) is urging the public to keep a lookout for an elephant believed injured by a trap in a palm oil plantation in Kluang, Johor.

The elephant was spotted by Orang Asli villagers at a riverside plantation in Sedohok in Kluang and the incident was reported to Perhilitan.

However, when the department arrived at the scene, the animal was nowhere to be found. It is believed to have moved to a nearby forest.

“Perhilitan Johor are searching for an elephant which was caught in a trap, so it can be rescued and treated,” it said on its Twitter page.

As such, it is urging anyone with further information to contact Perhilitan at 1800-88-5151.

Perhilitan said traps are often laid by poachers and are a threat to wildlife in Malaysia, however, it is unclear if this elephant was caught in a poacher’s trap.

Poaching and habitat loss are the two biggest threats against the elephant population in Malaysia, Perhilitan said.

Spate of human-elephant conflict

The call comes following a spate of human-elephant conflict reported in the past months.

“Shrinking of elephant habitats forces them out of the forests in search of food. This then creates the human-elephant conflicts,” it said on its website.

On Tuesday, an elephant calf was reportedly hit by a car at the Kota-Tinggi-Mersing highway.

Last month, Perhilitan translocated several elephants in Jerantut, Pahang and Kota Tinggi, Johor, following complaints from villagers and plantations.

“On Aug 7, Perhilitan Johor managed to catch a bull elephant and two female elephants in different locations in Kota Tinggi following several attacks by elephants lately.

“The elephants are healthy and active,” it said.

On Aug 3, five people managed to escape unscathed after an elephant trampled the car they were travelling in on the North-South Highway near Gerik.

The car had stopped to allow an elephant to cross the highway, but the elephant was spooked when another car had honked.

Days before that, a security guard at a sand mine in Kota Tinggi died in an encounter with a small group of elephants.

Elephants are an endangered wildlife species, with an estimated 1400 elephants in peninsular Malaysia.

According to Perhilitan, most human-elephant conflicts happen in Johor. In 2006 to 2015, 61 percent of the incidents happen in orchards and plantations, the department said. - Mkini