Skip to main content

Colombo, Sri Lanka | AFP – Wildlife authorities in Sri Lanka on Sunday found seven carcasses of young elephants believed to have drowned in the biggest single loss of the animals in five years.

An official said the onset of the southwest monsoon had led to flooding in the elephant habitat in Dimbulagala, around 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of the capital Colombo.

“We were alerted by villagers to three young elephants who had drowned last evening, but when we went to the marshy area we found four more,” a regional wildlife official said.

He said autopsies will be carried out on the seven carcasses on Monday, but a preliminary investigation suggested that the animals had gotten bogged down in the marsh and drowned.

In 2019, seven elephants were similarly found dead in the north-central region of the country. A year earlier in 2018, another seven drowned closer to the area where the latest deaths were reported.

Sri Lanka’s wild elephant population has dwindled to just over 7,000, according to the latest official data, down from an estimated 12,000 at the beginning of the last century.

aj/pjm/lb

© Agence France-Presse

Featured image credit: wirestock – Freepik.com

Seoul residents sweating with record ‘tropical nights’ weather
Seoul residents sweating with record ‘tropical nights’ weatherNews

Seoul residents sweating with record ‘tropical nights’ weather

By Hieun SHIN | AFP Seoul, South Korea - Residents of South Korea's capital are resorting to novel ways to beat the heat as a…
SourceSourceAugust 16, 2024 Full article
Making agriculture more resilient to climate change
Making agriculture more resilient to climate changeNews

Making agriculture more resilient to climate change

Researchers across MIT are working on ways to boost food production and help crops survive drought. Anne Trafton | MIT News - As Earth’s temperature…
SourceSourceNovember 1, 2024 Full article
Covering Climate Now Announces Winners of the 2024 CCNow Journalism Awards
Graphic news (s. climate, science, nature)
Covering Climate Now Announces Winners of the 2024 CCNow Journalism AwardsClimateNews

Covering Climate Now Announces Winners of the 2024 CCNow Journalism Awards

By CCNOW Today, the global journalism collaboration Covering Climate Now announced 51 winners of the 2024 CCNow Journalism Awards. Now in its fourth year, the…
SourceSourceJuly 9, 2024 Full article