Coimbatore heatwave and fodder shortage kill 8 elephants

Eight elephants have died in Coimbatore forest range as a result of a severe heatwave in the area. The Forest department has said the heatwave has caused a drought in the area leading to shortage of fodder.

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According to the Times of India, the District forest officer (DFO) S Ramasubramanian has said that that more elephants would go without food in the coming days if the region did not receive rain. He also added that the department can provide water facilities to the elephants, but they cannot provide fodder.

The Coimbatore forest division is spread across 711 sqkm has seven forest ranges - Coimbatore, Madukkarai, Bouluvampatti Periyanaickenpalayam, Karamadai, Mettupalayam and Sirumugai. Severe drought has taken a heavy toll in the forest areas of Madukkkarai, Sirmugai, Thadagam, Marudhamalai, Mettupalayam and a few more areas which have run out of green and fresh fodder for the elephants.

"An adult elephant needs 250 kg of food every day. So it wanders more than 12 hours in the forest for food. The severe drought has hit the forests and the elephants are struggling to survive due to non-availability of green fodder," said DFO Ramasubramanian.

"If the situation continues for a month, many elephants could die in the forests," added Ramasubramanian.

He has said the forest department has constructed at least seven water turfs in each of the ranges. "We have been filling water for animals in the turfs every day. Water is not a problem for elephants, green fodder is main problem," said Ramasubramanian.

From January 2017 to May 1, 2017, the drought has already claimed the lives of five female elephants, including a calf. Two bulls in the Sirumugai range perished due to unavailability of green fodder.

According to Ramasubramanian, the elephants will have to migrate to areas where there has been rain in order to survive. "This is the worst year for wild elephants in the past three decades. We are expecting rain to save the animals," he added.

The forest areas of the Nilgiri district which are almost 52 Km away from Coimbatore have received rain a few weeks ago and there is enough green fodder in the forests.