Dzanga Forest Elephants

Category: Elephants, Forest | Date: Aug 10 2008 | By: dzangaforestelephants

Throughout the years we have become acquainted with many elephant families and their evolution, which is effected by births and deaths and moreover poaching. One of the main problems with studying forest elephants at Dzanga is that although the site is the best that exists for studying this species, poaching has impacted their social organization and behavior.

At the beginning of the study in the early 1990’s one of the first groups we became familiar with was a large group known as the “Fourth Tuskless” family. The matriarch was an older female named 4th Tuskless who had very big ears and was a regular visitor to the clearing. Within the group there were four other adult females and their offspring and although they were not always together in a big group we were able to determine that all of these individuals were related with the group totaling over 20 individuals. Throughout the 1990’s this group was seen regularly in the clearing but in 2002 4th Tuskless and her adult daughter Esme were no longer sighted in the clearing leading me to believe that they had been killed. The first hint of their disappearance was the sighting of two of 4th Tuskless’s daughters, a subadult and juvenile female who both had distinct ear marks.

Since the disappearance of 4th Tuskless the group has reorganized itself with two of the younger females giving birth. The first birth was a male calf born to Fabula in 2004. Her son at a very young age injured his trunk which was probably cut by a wire snare half way up his length. When we first saw this injury we thought that the trunk would fall off but today four years later, his trunk is still intact and he manages to use it to drink, but the problem for him is to eat because the end is no longer prehensile and he is not able to grasp vegetation by the end of his trunk. Trunks are essential to the health of an elephant and are necessary for feeding. In the photo below is Fabula II in the hole, and a friend and if you look carefully you can see the trunk and where it is cut.

Fabula II & Friend

Another member of this large group is Fleur who gave birth during July to her first calf, Fleur II, a female. Fleur I is a very young female and one of 4th Tuskless’s daughters. Now the leftovers of this extensive group have reorganized themselves. One of the older females, Maureen, is still present in the bai and a regular visitor to the clearing and is observed with her two youngest calves. What I find astonishing is the resilency of these animals and despite intense hunting pressure they have been able to overcome the breakdown of their group and they are able to recognize each other and maintain their family unit.

Fleur II and Big Friend

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Category: Elephants, Forest | Date: Aug 10 2008 | By: dzangaforestelephants

For the past week there have been few elephants at the clearing and we suspect that there has been poaching in the area. Clearings where monitored are an excellent means for evaluating poaching pressure in an area. With this information we were able to contact the Dzanga Sangha Project who mobilized an extra antipoaching unit to investigate the area where we suspected poaching activity. Yesterday the numbers picked up in the clearing and instead of the ten to twelve individuals we saw over forty in the clearing. Of the forty many individuals we had observed during the week which means the same individuals had remained in the area despite the poaching pressure.

Good News ! The extra team which was sent out to patrol suspect area found a hunting camp a couple of kilometers from the clearing. When the patrol came upon the camp there were still people present and they immediately fled but the guards were able to confiscate the gun, a home made affair which is locally called a “yalinga.” These are common weapons here and are used to kill small game.

Guard With Confiscated “Yalinga”

The people who fled were not only hunting but also mining for diamonds which are very common in the area. The diamonds are found in river beds where people dig and sift the soil by hand which is a labor intensive activity. The Central African Republic is rich in diamonds which are found throughout the country. Below is a picture of the guard patrol with the stuff they confiscated. Not only did they find a gun but also found equipment for diamond mining which included sifters for finding the diamonds in the river sand.

Guard Patrol with Confiscated Material

It is this type of effort which provides essential protection to the wildlife on the ground. We pay attention to all sign of poaching and inform the anti-poaching unit of the Dzanga Sangha Project of any suspect activity. We would like to thank Cyril Pelissier for sending out the additional guard patrol which resulted in the confiscation of a gun and other material. Hopefully now the bai activity will return to normal and the numbers of elephant and other species will increase.

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