Sumatran Elephant

The Sumatran Elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus) is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian Elephant, and native to Sumatra island of Indonesia. In January 2011 the Sumatran elephant has been classified as critically endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 80% over the last three generations, estimated to be about 75 years. The subspecies is pre-eminently threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation; over 69% of potential elephant habitat has been lost within the last 25 years.

Characteristics

In general, Asian elephants are smaller than African elephants and have the highest body point on the head. The tip of their trunk has one finger-like process. Their back is convex or level. Females are usually smaller than males, and have short or no tusks. Sumatran elephants reach a shoulder height of between 2 and 3.2 m (6.6 and 10.5 ft), weigh between 2,000 and 4,000 kg (4,400 and 8,800 lb), and have 20 pairs of ribs. Their skin color is lighter than of maximus and indicus with least depigmentation.

Distribution of populations

The Sumatran elephant was once widespread on the island, and Riau Province was believed to have the largest elephant population in Sumatra with over 1,600 individuals in the 1980s. In 1985, an island-wide rapid survey suggested that between 2,800 and 4,800 elephants lived in all eight mainland provinces of Sumatra in 44 populations. Twelve of these populations occurred in Lampung Province, where only three populations were extant in 2002 according to surveys carried out between September 2000 and March 2002. The population in Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park was estimated at 498 individuals, while the population in Way Kambas National Park was estimated at 180 individuals. The third population in Gunung Rindingan–Way Waya complex was considered to be too small to be viable over the long-term.

By 2008, elephants had become locally extinct in 23 of the 43 ranges identified in Sumatra in 1985, indicating a very significant decline of the Sumatran elephant population up to that time. By 2008, the elephant was locally extinct in West Sumatra Province and at risk of being lost from North Sumatra Province too. In Riau Province only about 350 elephants survived across nine separate ranges.

Threats

The remaining population is threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and as a result of conflict with humans. 65% of Sumatran elephant deaths are because of human persecution.[citation needed] 30% of this human persecution is through poisoning because of fear of the animal. 83% of the Sumatran elephant's former habitat has now been turned into plantations; this means that the elephant has to learn to adapt to new habitats if it is to live.

Conservation

Elephas maximus is listed on CITES Appendix I. Sumatran elephants are protected under Indonesia law. In 2004, the Tesso Nilo National Park has been established in Riau province to protect the Sumatran elephant's habitat. This forest is one of the last areas large enough to support a viable population of elephants.

In captivity

In 1986 the Indonesian government started establishing Elephant Training Centers intended to capture and train elephants for use in logging, patrol work, and tourism. Currently there are six provincial centres on 11 separate sites, that hold approximately 400 elephants.

Population

In mid 1980s, when about 50% of natural forest remained on the island, elephant populations persisted in 44 discrete populations on all of the island’s eight provinces (Hedges et al. 2005). 1985: An island-wide rapid survey suggested that between 2,800 and 4,800 elephants lived in the wild in 44 ranges in all eight mainland provinces of Sumatra (Blouch and Haryanto 1984). Riau Province was believed to have the largest elephant population in Sumatra. 2002: Sumatra was still thought to contain some of the largest populations of Asian elephants outside of India and Sri Lanka. Rigorous dung density based surveys in Lampung Province’s two national parks, Bukit Barisan Selatan and Way Kambas, produced population estimates of 498 (95% CI=[373, 666]) and 180 (95% CI=[144, 225]) elephants, respectively. But province-wide surveys at the same time also showed that by 2002 elephants had gone locally extinct in nine of 12 elephant ranges recorded in Lampung in the early 1980s (Hedges et. al. 2005).

2007: Guesstimates suggested that between 2,400 and 2,800 elephants live in the wild (Soehartono et al. 2007). Given the very high number of elephants brought into captivity since 1985 (Mikota et al. 2003), the high mortality experienced during these government capture-and-translocation operations, and the high numbers of elephants lost to retaliatory killing after human–elephant conflict (WWF 2008) and poaching (based on local newspaper reports), it is highly likely that Sumatra’s total elephant population size in 1985 might actually have been greater than even that year’s high estimate of 4,800 elephants suggests. In any case, in only one generation (between 1985 and 2007) Sumatra may have lost up to 50% of its elephants. 2008: By 2008, elephants had become locally extinct in 23 of the 43 ranges identified in Sumatra in 1985, indicating a very significant decline of the Sumatran elephant population up to that time. By 2008, the elephant was locally extinct in one of Sumatra’s eight mainland provinces (West Sumatra) and at risk of being lost from North Sumatra Province too. Only ca. 350 elephants survived across nine separate ranges in Riau Province, which in 1985 was considered to have the largest elephant population in Sumatra with over 1,600 individuals.

Post-2008: Simple extrapolations from past population history suggests that Riau’s last surviving elephants may soon disappear if the current trend of forest loss continues (Uryu et al. 2008). Indeed, a 2009 survey of nine forest blocks in Riau that had elephant herds in 2007 revealed that six herds had gone extinct (Desai and Samsuardi 2009). Systematic study on the population of Sumatran Elephants is lacking from most of the elephant’s distributional range. Province-wide assessments have been conducted in Riau (Desai and Samsuardi 2009) and Lampung (Hedges et al. 2005). However, rigorous population estimates are only available from two protected areas in Lampung, namely Way Kambas National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (Hedges et al. 2005, Soehartono et al. 2007). Riau. Harboring extensive flat lowland forest that is a prime habitat for elephant, Riau province was one of the strongholds for elephant conservation. However, elephant numbers in this province dropped by 84% in less than 25 years (Uryu et al. 2007).  The population declined from ca. 1,342 in 1984 to ca. 210 in 2007. Due to habitat fragmentation, the number of fragmented elephant populations (“pockets”) increased from nine in 1984 to 16 in 1999. By 2007, mainly due to removal and killings related to conflicts, elephants were completely extirpated in several “pockets” including Rokan Hilir, Kerumutan, Koto Panjang, Bukit Rimbang Baling, Tanjung Pauh and Bukit Suligi. Thorough population estimates are not yet available  the latest assessment indicates that all  but two of these fragmented elephant populations are unlikely to survive over the long term. West Sumatra. Elephants have been completely extirpated from this province.

Lampung. Twelve of the 44 Sumatran elephant populations identified in the mid-1989s occurred in Lampung Province. But, according to surveys conducted in 2001 and 2002 only three were still extant in 2002, and one of those was not considered viable (Hedges et al. 2005). Surveys in the early 2000s using dung density based methods in Lampung Province’s two national parks, Bukit Barisan Selatan and Way Kambas, produced population estimates of 498 (95% CI=[373, 666]) and 180 (95% CI=[144, 225]) elephants, respectively (Hedges et al. 2005). New field surveys using fecal DNA based capture–recapture methods are currently underway in the two national parks (S. Hedges pers comm).