Elephant calf rescued, treated and released within two hours

Injured elephant calf that was rescued

Burapahari (Kaziranga National Park), July 30, 2003: An eight-month-old male elephant calf, trapped in a wire snare set up by poachers, was rescued on Tuesday and reunited with its natal herd on the outskirts of the Kaziranga National Park (KNP) in India’s north-eastern Assam state.

The calf was found close to the national highway near the Burapahari range by villagers who were attracted by its screams. “I found its left foreleg in a motor-cycle clutch wire noose attached to a bamboo pole,” the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) veterinarian, Dr. Bhaskar Choudhary, said. He was assisting a team of forest guards led by the range officer, Tamuli.

“It seemed to be a wire trap put up by poachers to snare deer,” he added. The CWRC was established by the Wildlife Trust of India and the Assam Forest department in partnership with the International fund for Animal Welfare(IFAW) to rescue and rehabilitate wildlife."

This is the third instance where the Assam Forest department and the CWRC staff have managed to rescue and reunite elephant calves with their natal herds within a few hours of their rescue. The centre already has three orphaned calves, which it plans to reintroduce after suitable preparations.

The calf, which was alarmed by the presence of people, kept charging at them and had to be physically restrained. “It was too young to be sedated so we had to tie it up with ropes to remove the wire and give it an anti-biotic injection,” he said.

Encircled area showing the injuries due to the wire trap

The calf was very active and as soon as the ropes were removed, it started running inside the forest towards an area where trumpeting elephants could be heard. “The forest staff followed it to a point where it was close to the herd and then left it. Till this afternoon, there was no news of it being rejected,” he said. Four forest guards have been deputed to keep a close watch on it.

The 430 square kilometer KNP, a world heritage site, is home to over 75 per cent of the world’s 2000 surviving Greater one horned rhinos (rhinoceros unicornis) besides a large population of elephants, tigers and other animals.

The park is recovering from the annual floods, which were at an all time high this year. Animals, which had moved to the neighbouring hills of the Karbi Anglong district for safety, are gradually returning to their home ranges.