Taking care of “little jumbos”
Premasara EPASINGHE
Ah... that was refreshing. Baby elephants after quenching their
jumbo thirst. |
One jumbo at time please! |
There is only room for
one here mate |
Care for a “bonus-round”? |
Gulp... Gulp... a Jumbo meal for a jumbo appetite |
Its party time! Baby elephants gather opposite their feeding
site. |
PARENTAL care plays an important role in the existence of the human
species. This is equally true in the case of animals too.
Recently I had the rare opportunity of seeing a place where orphaned
baby elephants were looked after and nursed by the keepers who
bottle-feed them with milk every three hours, daily. It is Eth Athuru
Sevana in the Udawalawe National Park.
When I reached this place my attention was drawn to a notice painted
on a wooden plank. It read:
“We accept your kind donations of milk powder Lactogen-II or cash for
the welfare of the elephants”
This elephant sanctuary is located in the Udawalawe National Park to
protect those animals that were displaced as a result of the Udawalawe
Development Scheme.
This sanctuary with its boundaries in Moneragala in the Uva Province
and Ratnapura in the Sabaragamuwa Province with an area of around 30,821
hectares was declared a National Park on June 30, 1972 with the sole aim
of conserving these national assets, elephants, fauna and flora within
the National Park.
This is the fifth National Park in the island opened to the public.
The elephant orphanage houses baby elephants that have been orphaned at
various locations in the island.
I noticed that this elephant orphanage is a well-thought out
rehabilitation camp looking after the helpless baby elephants carefully
and securely and ultimately releasing back into the forest - their
rightful place to live.
At present the number of baby elephants counts 26, at Eth Athuru
Sevana. They are in the age groups of one and half months to six years.
When the cute little elephants marched at the orphanage at 3.00 p.m. for
their afternoon milk feed, I recollected the following lines from the
“Gajaga Vannama:”
Gaman Yanena Sodha Rubera Taleta Eth Raja Gamane Yanne Pavan Salana
Lesa Kanpethi Solawa Mindada Hada Paturanne
I carefully observed their movements. When these loveable creatures
lined up and moved into their camp from the nearby grassland, they
conveyed a valuable lesson to us.
They proceeded in a disciplined manner in pairs, paused for a moment
and approached the feeding point in an orderly manner.
When the attendants stretched out the feeding bottles and feed tubes
towards them, they make various sounds of satisfaction as if to extol
the virtues of their milk feed.
The entire environment vibrates with the noises they make. Most of
them after finishing their turn slowly move out giving way to another
pair to feed. There are some “hard nuts” who return to the queue for a
second feed.
The attendants exclaimed that the baby elephant are sometimes trying
to get a “bonus”.
Dhammika Pebotuwa, the Udawalawe National Park Warden expressed the
following views about the Eth Athuru Sevana:
“No fees are charged from the visitors who visit the Eth Athuru
Sevana. The majority of the visitors to the National Park make a point
to step in to the orphanage which belongs to the Forest Conservation
Department of the Ministry of Environment.”
The Minister of Environment Patali Champika Ranawake, Head of the
Forest Conservation Department Ananda Wijesuriya and the Veterinary
Surgeon Suhada Jayawardane are ever looking after the welfare of these
innocent lovely baby elephants. They are very dedicated and committed
and look after the welfare of these elephants.
I asked Pebotuwa if he has any message to the public in connection
with the baby elephant and generally about Eth Athuru Sevana.
“Yes, if the general public can provide us as donations of Lactogen
II milk or cash donations, we will gladly accept it. We will issue an
official receipt for the same immediately from our office.
If you need any further information regarding this matter, you can
contact us on the following telephone numbers:
Dhammika Pebotuwa 047-2233292
Dr. Suhada Jayawardane 047-2232147
The baby elephants who have been looked after with tender care and
brought up in this orphanage for a considerable length of time also feel
the sorrow of leaving their loved ones, who fed and looked after them
like their parents.
I must mention the most sentimental and the difficult moment to bear
is the moment that these rehabilitated elephants are taken away from Eth
Athuru Sevana orphanage and release to the National Park.
April 23, 2007 was the saddest day for Eth Athuru Sevana elephants,
namely Gajaba, Mahasen, Trunky, Florence, Pinky, Kora, Wasana, Temby,
Kithmali and Lilee who resided at the orphanage for many years. The day
dawned for them to leave the place where they were fed and looked after.
The arrival of trucks to Eth Athuru Sevana transmit a very unhappy
message to all the baby elephants. In their sixth sense, they know that
their stay at the orphanage comes to an end when they see the trucks.
The elephants resist to leave their beloved home and their guardians
at Eth Athuru Sevana where they were nursed for many years. You can see
tears pouring from the eyes of the elephants as well as attendants when
they leave. It is a very sentimental and moving sight.
There are 26 baby elephants presently at Eth Athuru Sevana. They are
given three to six litres of Lactogen II milk according to the age
groups of the elephants.
Once they are rehabilitated and released to the forest, these herd of
elephants live together for few months and do not mix with other
elephants in the forest range.
You must be spending a large amount to maintain them?
“Yes, for Lactogen 11 milk powder alone, we spend Rs. 650,000 per
month. Added to this expenditure, for medicine and vitamins for sick
elephants, we incur more expenditure.
The total is roughly about rupees one million approximately for a
month. Then, to look after these elephants I have a workforce of about
30. Therefore, roughly we incur an expenditure of at least rupees two
million to maintain the Eth Athuru Sevana,” remarked Dhammika Pebotuwa.
The elephants are a national treasure that we possess. I appeal to
the general public to support generously the Forest Conversation
Department to maintain them.
|
