Satellite Tracking Pygmy Elephants in Borneo
WorldWildlife.Org
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This month, WWF and the Sabah (Malaysia) Wildlife Department set out on an expedition to capture several pygmy elephants on the island of Borneo and outfit them with high-tech equipment that will allow us to better study the population.
For the first time, Borneo pygmy elephants were outfitted with collars that send their GPS coordinates to a satellite several times a day, allowing WWF to track the elephants' movements as we study the elephants and their habitat.
WWF and Columbia University researchers proved in 2003 that the elephants on Borneo -- the world's third-largest island -- are genetically distinct from other Asian elephants and are likely a new subspecies.
Watch a slide show of the first-ever radio collaring of a pygmy elephant, nicknamed Roselis.: In June 2005, WWF outfitted five pygmy elephants with satellite collars and began tracking them through the forests of Borneo for two years to learn more about these little pachyderms. They're pint-sized, chubby and gentle-natured - and found nowhere else on Earth.
The scientific world knows almost nothing about them. How many are there? Do they form the same matriarchal societies as other elephants? Why do they live only in a tiny pocket of forest on the northeast tip of Borneo? One thing we do know is that they are under severe threat as their jungle habitat is considered prime real estate for commercial palm oil plantations.
As they must search harder for food in a shrinking habitat, they are often seen as crop-raiding pests by plantation workers and small farmers. WWF guesstimates that there are as few as 1,500 pygmy elephants remaining, but further research is needed to determine a better count.
WorldWildlife.Org___________
This month, WWF and the Sabah (Malaysia) Wildlife Department set out on an expedition to capture several pygmy elephants on the island of Borneo and outfit them with high-tech equipment that will allow us to better study the population.
For the first time, Borneo pygmy elephants were outfitted with collars that send their GPS coordinates to a satellite several times a day, allowing WWF to track the elephants' movements as we study the elephants and their habitat.
WWF and Columbia University researchers proved in 2003 that the elephants on Borneo -- the world's third-largest island -- are genetically distinct from other Asian elephants and are likely a new subspecies.
Watch a slide show of the first-ever radio collaring of a pygmy elephant, nicknamed Roselis.: In June 2005, WWF outfitted five pygmy elephants with satellite collars and began tracking them through the forests of Borneo for two years to learn more about these little pachyderms. They're pint-sized, chubby and gentle-natured - and found nowhere else on Earth.
The scientific world knows almost nothing about them. How many are there? Do they form the same matriarchal societies as other elephants? Why do they live only in a tiny pocket of forest on the northeast tip of Borneo? One thing we do know is that they are under severe threat as their jungle habitat is considered prime real estate for commercial palm oil plantations.
As they must search harder for food in a shrinking habitat, they are often seen as crop-raiding pests by plantation workers and small farmers. WWF guesstimates that there are as few as 1,500 pygmy elephants remaining, but further research is needed to determine a better count.
