4 days ago
Farmers lament losses caused by elephants breaking out of Kruger Park
'We do attend to the complaint calls, and sometimes we monitor their [elephants'] movements. Where they cause damage, we intervene. Unfortunately there is no compensation policy [for damage caused by wild animals] in the province to assist communities or farmers.'
SanParks spokesperson Ray Thakhuli said: 'There are many reasons [elephants escape], one being the animals can push down the [park's] fence and walk into the surrounding area. Another reason is that people take [parts of] the park's fence and they [animals] have an easy way to walk out.'
Thakhuli said elephants continually move within the landscape, regularly moving between SA and Zimbabwe. He said there are an average of one report of elephants breaking out of the park each week during periods of high elephant activity linked to seasonal variations in rainfall and food availability.
'[The elephants] are herded back into the park by helicopter, where applicable, or euthanised where necessary. Environmental monitors also frequently report breakages for urgent responses by the authorities, and they fix the fences where necessary.
'Communities are advised to report elephant presence to the relevant authorities and refrain from taking matters into their hands or obstruct authorities in the implementation of their duties.'
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