News
Leave Gemunu alone, plead elephant experts
View(s):Wildlife enthusiasts were disturbed by the news of a shooting incident in Yala recently. It revolved around the well-known tusker Gemunu, who has earned the reputation of getting close to safari jeeps in search of food. Initially the reports said the iconic tusker had been shot. But a video footage later showed a soldier firing a single shot into the air to scare the jumbo away.
The Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance however, clearly states that under no circumstances should a service weapon be discharged in a national park at a wild animal, other than by a member of the Department of Wildlife Conservation. The incident is therefore a clear violation of national park rules, experts point out.
The soldier may have acted in good faith to ensure the safety of terrified visitors and some support his action pointing that if the animal had attacked the jeep resulting in injury or death of someone the army would have been criticised for not acting. Fortunately in this case the action by the army officer, who risked his own life saw the situation resolved without an issue.
But many experts ask, what if Gemunu had panicked and charged the soldier who had a fully loaded weapon, would he have fired at the elephant in self defence? They point out that such a situation should be handled only by wildlife experts.
Gemunu is an adult elephant in his twenties. Lal Anthonisz who is responsible for naming many of Yala’s tuskers say he gave the name ‘Gemunu’ on a suggestion by Sajith Premadasa himself a wildlife enthusiast. Gemunu had always been a ‘people-friendly’ jumbo and it was known to have habituated Yala Village Hotel on the Yala border in search of food. In early 2000, Gemunu who had broken into the hotel kitchen had got trapped there and it is learnt that he had damaged the kitchen. A change of management saw a change of heart and the animal was not encouraged in the hotel premises and the elephant had wandered away from the hotel.
However, visitors to the park continued to feed Gemunu although feeding is prohibited. Since last year Gemunu had shown signs of becoming aggressive in his approach towards vehicles in his search for food. This was creating a potentially dangerous situation for both visitors and the tusker itself. The Sunday Times reported this situation in January this year in an article titled, “Feeding wild elephants is high-risk entertainment”.
The article also carried advice by elephant experts on what to do to avoid this kind of situation. “The best thing you can do is avoid the elephant,” advised elephant biologist Dr. Prithviraj Fernando. “If you see him in the distance, turn around and drive off. Also, seal or tie up any boxes or bags containing food,” he had. But his words of advice have obviously gone unheeded.
Another recent video shows Gemunu putting his whole trunk and most of its head into a safari jeep looking for food, while the people in the jeep get off the vehicle. One person is seen standing just a few inches away from the elephant. If the people had panicked the scene could have ended in tragedy, elephant experts say.
Gemunu is still a gentle giant, but visitors to the park must remember that these are wild animals and elephants in particular are unpredictable during musth. Meanwhile wildlife enthusiasts say Gemunu is a star attraction in Yala and relocation was not an option.
Therefore it is upto the visitors to the park to act more responsibly and not entice him with food for their own safety and the safety of the tusker, say elephant experts. They point out that once Gemunu realised there was no food forthcoming from Yala Hotel he retreated from the vicinity, likewise if visitors stopped feeding him he would not approach the safari jeeps