Zoos repeatedly argue they are saving elephants from dangers in the wild by “conserving” them in a zoo. This is a conservation con. True conservation only happens where elephants live, in Asia and Africa. While there are perils that face wild elephants, it is also a fact that many innovative solutions are being utilized to keep them safe in their home countries. A few ingenious tactics are meeting with success in the state of Sabah, Malaysia, in northern Borneo.

Planting Peace

Elephants are squeezed into smaller and smaller areas when forests and natural habitats are taken away from other animals for agriculture, infrastructure, and development on behalf of humans. In Malaysia, elephants raid palm oil plantations to eat one of their favorite foods, palm leaves, leading to danger and death from human-elephant conflict. Fortunately, non-profits, government agencies, and a palm plantation owner are collaborating to create buffer zones of plants elephants don't like around the palm oil plantations, and corridors so elephants can travel more safely. Over the last three years, conservationists planted 50 acres of grasses that lure elephants away from the temptation of palm plants. The tall grasses provide an attractive and ever-present source of food for the wild elephants that roam in and out of Tabin Wildlife Reserve, And, unlike any other type of plant, grasses grow back again profusely after they have been consumed, creating not only a successful but a sustainable solution.

This kind of ingenuity is leading the way to a brighter and safer future for elephants and humans by providing new hope for their peaceful coexistence.

Chendra's Story

The sad story of Chendra, an orphaned Borneo pygmy elephant, underscores the difficulties elephants face when taken from their natural environments. Chendra was brought to the Oregon Zoo in 1999, at four years old on a breeding loan from the Sabah Government. She is blind in one eye due to an apparent shooting at a palm oil plantation. 

As a separate subspecies of Asian elephants, Borneo elephants are smaller than Asian elephants. Despite this, the zoo tried to breed Chendra with much larger Asian bull elephants. All attempts failed until she finally got pregnant, but her pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. At the same time of her pregnancy, she contracted Tuberculosis. Chendra has numerous health problems including foot infections and lameness in one leg and she often walks in continuous circles, a zoochotic behavior only seen in confinement, and a clear sign of stress and depression.

Chendra's tragic tale highlights the terrible consequences of transplanting elephants from their wild homes to live miserable lives in zoos. The best solution for Chendra is retirement to a true elephant sanctuary where she can begin to heal from her years of suffering at the Oregon Zoo.

Protecting elephant habitats, ensuring safe travel corridors, and fostering solutions like those in Malaysia are steps in the right direction for ensuring elephants can thrive in the wild, where they belong.

Call, post on social media, and send a letter to send Chendra to sanctuary now.

Please also take a moment to find out more about elephants in Asia and Africa.