The present status and management of domesticated Asian elephants in Viet Nam - Trinh Viet Cuong, Tran The Lien and Pham Mong Giao

Introduction

On a national scale, almost all of the forested areas in Viet Nam are located along the international borders with Laos and Cambodia, although some forested areas remain in various remote and inaccessible areas, such as in the far north and northwest. In lowland areas, human impacts, especially the conversion to industrial tree plantations, agricultural land, and human settlements have rapidly devastated (and continue to devastate) many forests. Moreover, logging, the exploitation of forest products and hunting are also adversely impacting the quality of the remaining forests. Population expansion has created a dilemma of Malthusian proportions in Viet Nam, and the resulting development and expansion of infrastructure, industry and agriculture can be regarded as the principal causes of bio-diversity decline and forest depletion in Viet Nam. The Government of Viet Nam is well aware of this issue, and has made considerable efforts to strengthen nature conservation activities by enlarging the protected area network. At present, there are 11 national parks, 53 natural reserves, 17 species reserves/habitats and 25 protected landscapes giving a total area of 2 340 440 ha set aside for the purpose of conserving bio-diversity and protecting fauna and flora in the remaining forest areas.

The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) in Viet Nam (both wild and domesticated) is becoming increasingly endangered, and without urgent action, in terms of on-the-ground conservation, the species faces extinction. In 1996, a joint action programme,"Rescue of elephant species threatened with extinction in Viet Nam”, between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and Fauna and Flora International (FFI) was proposed. The programme is still active and has been carried out with great efforts from both sides in recent years.

Currently, there may be only two areas suitable for long term elephant conservation and it is absolutely essential that these areas are properly protected because their elephant populations are considerably higher than those in other places, and probably represent the only populations in the country whose long-term survival is likely. The areas are Dak Lak province (high plateau in West Viet Nam) which is suitable for the conservation of wild and domesticated elephants and Nghe An province (Central Viet Nam) which is suitable for the conservation of wild elephants.

The elephant has long been an animal of enormous cultural, religious and even political and economic significance in Viet Nam. Revered by certain ethnic minorities, domesticated elephants played a crucial role transporting supplies and weapons during the wars of independence, as well as gracing the royal courts of Hue as symbols of the power and majesty of the old kingdom. Even today elephants still play an active part in Viet Nam's culture and economy, for transportation, in zoos and circuses, at festivals and as an important facet of ecotourism.

The status of wild elephants

The results of countrywide surveys conducted in the last 30 years document the critical decline of the wild elephant population. It is also evident that in many areas where elephants were known to occur, they no longer exist or their range has been severely restricted. Thus even in those areas where elephants still remain, they are generally only in very small and isolated herds. Indeed, the largest known herd in Viet Nam is found in Dak Lak, and consists of only 15-20 individuals (Trinh Viet Cuong, 2000). The elephant population was undoubtedly declining in the 30 years prior to the Viet Nam War. During the war, however, the elephant population was directly affected by bombing as elephants were used for transporting supplies. Since then, elephant numbers have been rapidly falling as a result of poisoning (from agent orange, napalm and other defoliants), hunting, deforestation and habitat loss.

After the war, in the period from 1975 to 1980, the number of elephants was estimated to be about 1 500-2 000 individuals (Le Vu Khoi and Do Tuoc, 1989) with elephant ranges located across most of the country. Since 1980, the number of elephants began decreasing for several reasons:

1). Agricultural conversion has destroyed thousands of hectares of forest.

2). Logging has significantly reduced the forest area.

3). The extraction/exploitation of NTFPs has degraded many elephant habitats.

4). Forest fires.

5). Hunting for ivory.

The result is that the majority of elephant populations are very small, have become extremely dispersed and isolated with a hugely restricted range. In short, many areas are not suitable, nor are the populations large enough to be viable and there is little hope for their long-term survival.

In the period from 1990-1992, the number of wild elephants was estimated to be about 400-600 individuals (Dawson et al., 1996). In this period a great number of wild elephants and even domesticated elephants were killed for ivory. In the period 1993-1995, the elephant population fell to about 258-305 individuals in a total of 33 elephant ranges. Data collected between 1996 and2000 suggests that there are only 19 elephant ranges left with a total of 85-114 individuals. These figures show, within ten years from 1990 to 2000, 14 elephant ranges have become non-existent, and the total elephant population has declined by more than 70 percent (see Table 1, and Fig. 1). All elephant ranges have been affected, with the elephants dispersing into small groups of five or six individuals. Many herds have only females, which means they have no possibility of reproducing and building up their populations.

From an overall perspective, North Viet Nam has no elephants and in Central Viet Nam there are some elephant ranges with very small and scattered populations. They are extremely isolated, with little or no chance of grouping together to form healthy, viable populations. Their range is mostly restricted to the border regions with Lao PDR and Cambodia. Dak Lak is now the only province to possess a significant population of elephants, but they are facing a number of threats and conflicts. In South Viet Nam, elephant populations are very small, isolated and face food shortages.

Table 1. The estimated declining number of wild elephants in Viet Nam

Fig. 1. The decline in the number of wild elephants in Viet Nam

Causes of the decline in wild elephant populations

Forest habitat has been reduced, males are hunted for ivory, and elephants have been killed during human-elephant conflicts or as a result of human revenge attacks. In the high plateau area of West Viet Nam, wild elephants are also caught for taming.

The statistics below demonstrate the seriousness of the situation:

1. In Muong Te (Lai Chau province), in the period 1974-1976, there were approximately 180 elephants, however, by 1991 the numbers had declined by 91 percent with only 15 individuals left. Illegal hunting for ivory occurred intensely between 1987 and 1989. Elephant tusks were sold to Laos. It is reported that in Lai Chau town the FPD recovered about 250-300 kg of ivory, an amount that probably originally required at least 30 elephants to be killed by illegal hunting, and some of these, judging by the size of the recovered tusks, were still too young for ivory cutting. At present, there is no evidence to support the belief that elephants still exist in this province (Pham Mong Giao et al., 2000)

2. The adjacent area between Binh Thuan, Dong Nai, Ba Ria and Vung Tau, between 1979-1983, contained more than 500 000 ha of forest with approximately 80-90 individuals. In 1992, as a consequence of heavy forest disturbance, the elephant population decreased by 44 individuals (Sharif B. Daim; Pham Mong Giao). By October 1999, it had no more than six individuals (Trinh Viet Cuong & Tran The Lien). The population had declined by 93 percent in 17 years.

3. Between 1960-1965, in Tra Mi and Tien Phuoc (Quang Nam province), there were two herds of elephant totalling about 80 individuals. In 1997, there were only approximately eight to nine individuals (Trinh Viet Cuong, 1997). Recent surveys conducted in May 2000, revealed there are only six individuals left (Trinh Viet Cuong, 2000).

4. In 1975, reports from local people indicated that Dak Lak had hundreds of elephants. In 1996, the population was estimated to be around 40 individuals (Dawson, Do Tuoc and Trinh Viet Cuong and Pham Mong Giao, 1996). Surveys conducted in September 2000 demonstrated a further decline of around 50 percent in four years to 15-20 individuals (Trinh Viet Cuong, 2000).

5. During 1990-1995, Nghe An province possessed a population of 40-50 individuals although surveys one year later in 1996 estimated the population to be around 17-24 individuals. However, at present, the population can be expected to be much lower.

Another matter that should also be considered is that of human-elephant conflict (HEC). It is not a new occurrence in many Asian countries, but this is one of the main threats to the existence of wild elephants. The data collected shows that HECs are proportionate to the area of forest converted in the interests of human expansion and development. From 1993 to 1997, a wild elephant herd in Tan Phu Forest Enterprise (Dong Nai province) killed nine people. In 1998, an elephant herd raided crops, huts and killed a further three people. In 1999, an elephant herd in Tan Phu (Dong Nai) (about five individuals including one young animal) crossed La Nga River to Binh Thuan province where they raided crops, destroyed huts and killed a married couple who had been staying in the forest. Later the elephants entered Bien Lac-Nui Ong Natural Reserve, Duc Linh district and killed two illegal loggers who had been staying in the forest. Still later, the elephants killed a firewood collector who had been staying in the forest.

During 10 days at the end of May 1999, an elephant herd killed five people (spontaneous immigrants), who were converting the forest for cultivation. Local authorities and other relevant agencies took active measures to urgently assist the victims' families, and at the same time informed local people about HEC conflict avoidance/mitigation measures.

In Viet Nam, human-elephant conflicts take place in many districts and provinces. There are nine areas among the 19 elephant ranges where human-elephant conflicts are taking place because of the reduction in areas of suitable habitat and the resulting food shortages. Because agricultural areas are located in or near forests, it is difficult to avoid crop damage because the crops, fruit trees, starch trees, and industrial trees such as sugarcane are palatable to elephants. Consequently, the human-elephant conflicts inflict heavy impacts on the local economy and rural livelihoods. As mentioned above the outcomes can be very grave indeed, including human deaths in some places, frightening local people off and leading to villagers driving elephants away or killing elephants out of revenge or for protection. At present, there are no effective measures to minimize HEC and some measures used by local people to drive elephants away are becoming increasingly ineffective as the elephants become habituated to this behaviour. Currently, levels of compensation and assistance for victims of HEC are very low, thus local people tend to do what they can to protect themselves, including killing the elephants.

The status of domesticated elephants

At the turn of the century, Indochina was home perhaps to nearly half the entire Asian elephant population. As in India, the capture and domestication of wild elephants in Viet Nam was a traditional activity. Domesticated elephants were sold to neighbouring countries such as Cambodia and Laos.

Domesticated elephants are mainly concentrated in Dak Lak province (Tay Nguyen), the highest numbers are in Buon Don and Ea Sup districts where the ethnic minority peoples (M'Nong, Gia Rai, E De) have long held the tradition of catching and domesticating wild elephants. The domesticated elephants are used for a number of purposes such as transporting supplies, logging, travelling in forests (hunting, collecting forest products), taking part in festivals, worship or tourist services.

Some people, particularly those involved in ecotourism, would like to see the practice of capturing and domesticating wild elephants to be continued and perhaps expanded, however, this should be resisted on a number of grounds: (1) Elephants are state property; (2) the law prohibits the hunting of wild elephants for domestication; (3) elephants rarely breed in captivity in Viet Nam and thus domestication prevents the long term survival of the species in this country.

The number of elephants captured has been reduced during the last five years. However, this activity still takes place annually. Before 1990, every year 10-12 wild elephants (Do Tuoc, 1989) were captured in the Ban Don area (Buon Don district). The hunters who catch a large number of elephants are accorded considerable status and respect by their peers. Based on the data surveyed in 1979-1980, Dak Lak province reportedly had 502 domesticated elephants. There were 299 animals left in 1990, and only 169 animals existed in 1997 in ten districts, a reduction of 130 domesticated elephants in seven years. According to recent survey statistics (12/2000), there are 138 domesticated elephants remaining in Dak Lak province, a decline of 364 individuals (1980-2000), and there are 27 individuals distributed in other parts of the country. Thus, the total number of domesticated elephants in the whole country is only 165 individuals (Table 2 and Fig. 2). Most of the domesticated elephants originate from Buon Don and Ea Sup districts (Dak Lak province).

Table 2. The declining number of domesticated elephants in Viet Nam

Fig. 2. The declining domesticated elephant population in Viet Nam

The numbers of domesticated elephants in Dak Lak province in 1990, 1997 and 2000 were 299, 171 and 138 individuals respectively. Between 1990 and 1997, there was a decline of 33.7 percent and between 1997 and 2000 there was a decline of 27.5 percent. The 138 domesticated elephants in 2000 consisted of 95 females and 43 males. In terms of age, 40 (29 %) were over 50 years old, 87 (63 %) were between 20 to 49 years old (breeding age) and 11 (8 %) were under 20 years old and not mature enough for breeding (see Table 3).

Causes of the decline in the domesticated elephant population from 1990 to 1997

1. The number of wild elephants has decreased in Buon Don - Ea Sup region, therefore it has become increasingly difficult to capture elephants. Furthermore, the law prohibits the hunting of elephants, and the catching and taming do not take place as openly as before. Good hunters specializing in capturing and domesticating elephants are scarce nowadays and many of those who practised the art as a livelihood or on a regular basis are now old.

Table 3. The declining domesticated elephant population in Dak Lak province, 1990-2000

2. Elephants are used as a source of labour, so the mahouts do not want their elephants to breed, as this would prevent them from working. When domesticated elephants are left in the forest to feed, they are always tied to trees with a leg-iron, so it is really hard for them to breed with wild elephants or even with other domesticated elephants.

3. Recently, economic and social development has meant that machines are now replacing elephant labour, and using elephants for transportation is becoming less and less appropriate or necessary. Without these sources of work, elephants have become a"burden” for poor families who own them. In some places, they have to sell their elephants. Elephants are still useful in areas where transportation is not developed or in some places where there is tourism potential.

4. Forests areas are being converted for other land uses such as construction, national defence, industrial tree plantations of coffee and rubber. This fragments the elephant populations and reduces the chances for breeding as well as leading to food shortages.

5. At present, the domesticated elephants are still not controlled. The mahouts can sell or exchange their elephants illegally, for more benefit. This is done by transferring to someone inside the region or selling it to other districts and provinces including Lao PDR and Cambodia. Some households exchange elephants for oxen and buffaloes, etc.

6. Many elephants have died because of mahouts' carelessness, shortage of food and water in the dry seasons (annually, from November to April). Some have died of old age and weakness and lack of medical treatment, some have died of overwork. In some cases, elephants have died as a result of fighting with each other to get food in feeding areas or to breed with a wild elephant.

7. Many elephants (male) have been illegally shot for ivory while feeding in the forest. Ivory and elephant bone products are sold in many souvenir shops in tourist places, airports or in big towns and cities.

Some information on the commercial value of elephants and associated products

1. Information on prices of selling domesticated elephants (survey records in May 2000 at the exchange rate: US$1 = 15 000 Viet Nam dong)

1). Illegal sale to Cambodia: price unclear as they are exchanged for oxen, buffaloes or tools or equipment.

2). Sale inside Viet Nam (to other provinces): 30-60 million VND/individual (equivalent: US$2 000-4 000). For example: in 1998, in Buon Don district, two elephants were sold to Dam Nha Phu Ecotourist Company (in Khanh Hoa province); one male (four years old) for a price of 30 million VND; one female (15 years old) for 50 million VND.

3). In 1993, the elephant relocation programme planned to buy three mature elephants (male and female) at a price of 100-150 million VND in Krong Bong district (Dak Lak province) to use them for catching problem elephants in Ba Ria, Vung Tau, Dong Nai, Binh Thuan (where human-elephant conflicts were known to occur). The programme eventually decided just to rent the elephants.

2. Information on sale price of elephant products:

In Dak Lak province, the Forest Protection Department (March 2000) caught one man who was collecting domesticated elephant products from Lak district:

Law

Viet Nam's elephants are on the brink of extinction, however, this is merely symptomatic of a general trend in the rapidly declining biodiversity of the country. Indeed, there are many species whose status must be regarded as endangered or critically endangered now in Viet Nam. The main reasons for this are hunting and the illegal wildlife trade. Although some violators have been fined or sentenced heavily and enforcement has improved in recent years, a great deal of trafficking continues unabated and, of course, so does hunting to fulfil the demand of the market. Furthermore, the high profits that can be obtained for animal parts, meat and skins may represent very significant incomes in marginalized communities and hence violations remain commonplace and are even increasing in some areas. The limited level of local awareness about wildlife conservation and law is also a considerable limitation in trying to stem current trends.

Since the 1960s, the Government of Viet Nam has issued a number of regulations and the Criminal Law has been changed several times to cover all the recent changes. Regarding protection of elephants, there are concrete regulations and instructions that are summarized below:

1. Government Instruction 143/TTG, dated 21 June 1960, on the prohibition of elephant hunting.

2. Decree No. 39/CP, dated 5 April 1963, on temporal regulations of Viet Nam for hunting forest birds and animals.

3. Law of Forest Protection and Development approved by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on 12 August 1991.

4. Decree No. 18/HDBT, dated 17 January 1992, determining the list of rare and precious fauna and flora and regulations for their management and protection. In this Decree elephants are listed in Group IB, which means that all means of exploitation - hunting, killing, selling, etc. - are strictly prohibited. Both wild and domesticated elephants are protected by the law at the highest degree.

5. Instruction 130/TTG, dated 27 March 1993, on the management and protection of rare and precious fauna and flora.

6. Instruction 359/TTG, dated 29 May 1996, on urgent measures for wildlife protection and development, which authorized all the relevant ministries, branches and levels to prevent hunting and seriously punish those caught hunting.

7. On 1 July 200, the Criminal Law of Viet Nam came into effect. It determines concepts of tracking down the criminals responsible for illegal activities such as using and exploiting rare and precious wildlife.

8. Besides the regulations in law, elephants are listed in the Red Book of Viet Nam of group V (endangered species).

9. In April 1994, Viet Nam became a signatory to the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES). Since then, the elephant has been included in Annex I. All means of exporting and importing elephants and their products for commercial purposes are prohibited.

Although the law of Viet Nam is very clear in its regulations prohibiting elephant hunting and trade in elephant products, hunting still occurs and hunters have become more and more deft at avoiding detection. The illegal hunters often hide their guns and equipment in the forest (a great part of this equipment remains from the Viet Nam War). They enter the forest like any other villager whose purpose is product collection. Almost all hunting incidents are discovered long after they have taken place. Thus it is very difficult to investigate the alleged offender. In many places, the illegal movement of people from other regions to forests is often associated with uncontrolled activities of hunting and exploitation.

One further constraint is that there are simply insufficient resources and capacity to effectively address the problem of hunting and wildlife trade monitoring, particularly in the face of a trade that is so large, complicated and frequently well organized. Thus, the number of offenders caught and brought to justice is very small and represents only a fraction of the problem. In addition, the fines that are applied are generally inadequate as a deterrent. The vast rewards of this kind of offence make the risk worthwhile.

A review of the preliminary statistics of incidents that led to prosecution reveals the following:

1) In 1980, in Nghe An, some elephant hunters were caught and prosecuted (there are no details of the outcome).

2) In 1983, in Ea Kar (Dak Lak province), one incident of killing elephant for ivory was punished with a two years prison sentence.

3) In 1991, in Muong Te district (Lai Chau province), one Dao man was sentenced to three months suspended sentence after being found guilty of involvement in six hunting incidents. The local FPD recovered about 250-300 kg of ivory.

4) In 1991, in Vinh Son district (Binh Dinh province), one Ba Na man (16 years old) was punished for shooting a male elephant. This was an internal commune prosecution.

5) In March 2000, in Buon Me Thuot town (Dak Lak province) Dak Lak FPD recovered 503 kg of bone, tusks, legs and skin from domesticated elephants killed in Lar and Buon Don districts.

From the above figures, it is clear that the number of incidents of illegal elephant hunting for which the offender is caught and punished reflects less than one percent of the actual thousands of incidents of elephant killing within the past 20 past years.

In the period 1990-1995, in Dak Lak province, a number of domesticated elephants were killed while feeding in the forest. For example, in a village of Buon Don district, nine domesticated elephants were killed between 1990 and 1992. Female elephants were also killed for their teeth. However, none of the offenders was prosecuted.

Hundreds of wild elephants have been caught for taming, but none of the persons involved in these incidents has been prosecuted. The trading of domesticated elephants and their products are still not, as yet, controlled. The law does need a certain amount of clarification and needs to be amended to improve regulation on this matter. Some incidents of trading elephant's products have been discovered, but confiscation of the goods was the only form of redress. This is one of the factors limiting efforts to halt the decline in the number of wild elephants in Viet Nam.

Management and registration of domesticated elephants

There is no registration of domesticated elephants at any of the four authority levels: central government, province, district and commune. Domesticated elephants are locally managed at village or family level. They are not protected from illegal hunting while feeding in the forests.

The tusks of domesticated elephants that are cut periodically (about every three years) and sold in the form of various products are still not recorded and reported to any authority. The matter is completely decided by the mahout himself.

Only the sale of elephants to other provinces in the country is managed by permission from provincial and central government. Their sale or exchange inside Dak Lak province is decided by the mahouts. The sale of domesticated elephants to Lao PDR and Cambodia is not controlled yet and elephants are stealthily transported across the border along forest trails.

Since 1990, up to now, Dak Lak FPD has surveyed the controlled movement of domesticated elephants. However, other detailed studies on breeding, nutrition, veterinary care are still very limited and have not diffused to elephant mahouts. Veterinary centres have not yet been established to care for elephants when they are sick or injured or to deal with epidemic diseases.

The capture and domestication of wild elephants is still taking place, and there is yet to be implemented an effective system of prevention, despite the fact that the law prohibits these activities. Furthermore, the awareness and education activities that have been carried out appear to have met with only very limited success.

National and international programmes and projects for elephant conservation

National programmes and projects:

The government has already established a protected area network and there are some reserves and parks that have the responsibility for elephant conservation. They include Yok Don National Park in Dak Lak province, Cat Tien National Park and Pu Mat Nature Reserve in Nghe An province, Sop Cop Nature Reserve in Son La province, Vu Quang Nature Reserve in Ha Tinh province, Song Thanh - Dak Pring Nature Reserve in Quang Nam province, and Chu Mom Ray Nature Reserve in Kon Tum province. The most important areas are Yok Don National Park, Cat Tien National Park, and Pu Mat Nature Reserve.

The protected area network plan was devised by the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) in 1997 for the purpose of protecting rare and endangered species in Viet Nam.

The compilation of the Red Data Book of Viet Nam (section for mammals) was sponsored by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment (MOSTE).

In 1991, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development directed all FPDs to monitor elephant populations in each province. From 1992 to 2000, no projects focused on surveying and assessing the present national status of wild elephants. This information has been compiled over the course of many years.

Joint national and international programmes and projects:

Those programmes and projects are summarized in Table 4.

Table 4. Joint national and international programmes and projects

Joint national and international workshops on elephant conservation:

1) Elephant conservation is included within the general programme for conserving the forest resources and bio-diversity of Viet Nam.

2) In 1992, a workshop on elephant conservation in Viet Nam was jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Forestry and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The participating agencies were the Institute of Ecology & Biological Resources (IEBR), Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI) as well as several national universities in Viet Nam.

3) In 1996, an international convention"Rescue of elephant species threatened with extinction in Viet Nam” was co-sponsored by Fauna and Flora International (FFI) and the Ministry of Forestry. The participating agencies were the Forest Protection Department (FPD), Provincial Forest Protection Departments (FPDs), the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources (IEBR), and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI).

4) From 1995 to 1996, Viet Nam made efforts to coordinate with international organizations that aimed to give priority to elephant conservation. At the beginning of 1996, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Fauna and Flora International (UK) to implement on-the-ground elephant conservation activities. A project strategy was agreed upon and then carried out between 1996-1998. The plan chose three priority sites that were considered practicable areas for elephant conservation: Dak Lak, Quang Nam, and Nghe An.

5) In 1998, an international conference on Asian Elephant Conservation in Indochina was held by Fauna and Flora International (FFI) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The conference was attended by research institutes, universities and organizations.

Elephants' work

Domesticated elephants have had a long-standing relationship with some ethnic people in the Tay Nguyen plateau, such as the M'Nong, Gia Rai, and E De. The practice of domesticating elephants is mainly concentrated in Buon Don and Ea Sup districts in Dak Lak province. For a long time, the domesticated elephant have maintained an important role in the economic and cultural life, particularly within these ethnic societies.

The art of elephant hunting and taming has been practised since the eighteenth century. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Mr Y Thu was a celebrated elephant hunter and organizer of hunting, domestication and trade of elephants in Buon Don and his family possessed 100 elephants. The elephants captured and tamed in Buon Don were sold to the people in villages, communes or districts within Dak Lak province or in other provinces and to the government at that time. King Khai Dinh, King Bao Dai and President Ngo Dinh Diem were all known to have purchased elephants from Dak Lak province.

Elephants were also sold to neighbouring countries (Cambodia, Thailand and Lao PDR) and even exported to Hong Kong, Japan and France. Thus the elephant was a valuable economic asset to the ethnic minority people in the Tay Nguyen plateau.

During the Viet Nam War, elephants were employed in transporting people, food, weapons and supplies along the route through the Truong Son mountain range, where the rugged terrain prevented use of modern transportation. Eighteen elephants with more than 20 keepers were engaged in the work throughout this period.

After the war, domesticated elephants were still very useful animals in agricultural production and in other daily activities, such as transporting rice, hauling timber, making houses, and participating in celebrations and festivals. However, along with the modernization movement of the societies, such as road construction, mechanized agricultural production and industrial plantations, machinery and modern technology have gradually replaced the elephant in the working places. The role of domesticated elephants has now changed to serve the tourism industry. In Buon Don and Buon Ma Thuot City, for example, domesticated elephants are trained to run a race, play football, throw wood, and dance to the tune of a trumpet.

Among the families who bring up elephants, bulls are highly prized because a piece of ivory is harvested and sold every three years.

Health and veterinary care

Grazing:

Domesticated elephants consume from 100 kg to more than 200 kg of food per day, depending on their ages. They eat 54 species of forest vegetation [Le Vu Khoi (no date), or according to Cao Thi Ly, 1997, 62 species], and are particularly fond of Le grass (Vietnamosasa darlacensis and Oxytenanthera nigrociliata) and the tops of bamboo. They also eat Dipterocarpaceae species, such as Dau dong (Dipterocarpus tubercutatus), Cam lien (Pentacme siamensis), and Ca chit (Shorea obtuse). In Buon Don, families often release their elephants into the forest to find food for themselves.

People frequently move their elephants to different areas of the forest depending on food sources and seasonal changes. During the rainy season (between April and October), the elephants are usually released nearby, and the keeper will visit every three to five days. In the dry season (between November and March), food shortages often require greater distances to be travelled (up to 10 km) and the keeper will visit every one to two days to find new pastures. During the past ten years, as a result of illegal hunting levels intensifying (especially of bull elephants) and the number of wild elephants declining, domesticated elephants have become increasingly at risk from poachers when they are released far away. Consequently owners now tend to keep their elephants in pastures on average 3-5 km from their houses and check them one to two times a day. When ‘released' into the forest the elephants usually have a chain 15-20 m long tied to their hind foot, near a stream. In the dry season, the elephant is bathed in a big river or stream a minimum of once a day.

When the elephants work, they often do not eat. They work all day and are then released into the pasture in the evening. The bull elephants in the estrus season (February-April and October-December) are often chained, and feeding is limited until the end of this period.

Veterinary care:

Health care for elephants has not been researched thoroughly in Viet Nam. The keepers generally treat them according to traditional methods using special leaves found in the forest. Apart from that the elephants must recover spontaneously. Elephants may frequently be afflicted by diarrhoea, typically at the end of the dry season and the beginning of the wet season (May/June) when the vegetation in the forests is developing. The methods of treatment are as follows:

a) Feed sugarcane (three to five stalks per day) or give water with salt (0.5 g of salt with 5 litres of water). Let them drink this water once or twice a day, and feed banana and cassava.

b) Use Ampixilin - ten tablets per day, putting them in sugarcane stalks for elephants to eat. Or boil the bark and heartwood of dipterocarpus trees in water and let elephants drink it.

c) Burn straws of grass to ashes, afterwards put it on a corncob.

d) Grind a horn of antelope (Carpricornis sumatraensis) and then put it on a sugarcane stalk or banana trunk for the elephant to eat.

Skin diseases or wounds caused by chafing when working are treated as follows:

e) Pulverize Ampixilin and directly smear on wound.

f) Mix the soil of termite nest with ammoniac solution (NH₃) and apply it to the wound.

g) Boil medicinal plants found in the forest. Cool it down, and smear it on the wound.

Conclusions

The domesticated and wild elephants are threatened with extinction in Viet Nam if urgent actions are not taken.

Almost all of the wild elephant populations are concentrated in the border areas. In North Viet Nam, the elephant population is almost certainly extirpated. The population in Central Viet Nam is very small and is largely isolated which does not bode well for its long-term survival. Some small herds exist in South Viet Nam although they are also isolated and are increasingly in conflict with humans as their range and habitat is being converted for other types of land use.

There are only two areas suitable for elephant conservation and the long-term survival of the species, if proper protection can be guaranteed. In Dak Lak province, where the largest herd in Viet Nam is found, there is hope that this may be a viable population that can be conserved in the long-term. In Nghe An province, the population estimated is approximately 17-24, which is much higher than in other provinces in Central Viet Nam. However, a number of elephants have been killed by hunters, whilst some have been killed in elephant-human conflicts. Furthermore, this population is no longer likely to be as large as the Dak Lak herd and should be re-surveyed. In spite of this, it still represents the second most important priority area for elephant conservation in Viet Nam.

Between 1990 and 1992, the elephant population status was 400-600 (Dawson et al., 1993). Between 1996 and 2000, 19 areas had elephant populations with a total estimated population of 85-114 individuals. Hence the number of elephants has decreased by over 70 percent. All of the distribution areas have been and are being heavily impacted and most of the herds in Viet Nam do not exceed five to six individuals.

In Viet Nam, nine of the 19 elephant distribution areas are experiencing human-elephant conflicts, including two areas in critical status, Tra My-Tien Phuoc (Quang Nam province) and Tanh Linh district (Binh Thuan province). These conflicts are having a number of detrimental impacts on the local economy and livelihoods. In these areas, people are angry, afraid and often powerless and insufficiently supported. This has led to conflict levels heightened as the people have driven away the elephants from their croplands and in some instances have killed crop-raiding elephants out of revenge or to protect their crops. Now, no effective solutions seem to work. Almost all of the conflict mitigation measures are becoming ineffective as the elephants become habituated to them. Furthermore, these people are poorly assisted by both local, provincial and national government where there is no clearly defined policy that allows for compensation to victims of the conflicts, and there is little financial capacity to invest in more sophisticated conflict mitigation measures. It is for these reasons that those afflicted by conflicts have to deal with the situation themselves.

The population of domesticated elephants has also been in decline. Almost all originate from Buon Don district, Ea Sup district (Dak Lak province), where the tradition of wild elephant capture and domestication has been maintained. Between 1979 and 1980, the population was estimated to be 600 in Viet Nam, while Dak Lak province had 502 of those individuals. In December 2000, Viet Nam had only 165 domesticated elephants, 138 of them in Dak Lak. Thus, during the last 20 years, the domesticated elephant population has decreased by more than 70 percent.

The domesticated elephant population is decreasing for several reasons: the wild population has decreased so that capture has decreased accordingly. Also the introduction of laws and regulations prohibiting elephant hunting and domestication has meant a significant decline in hunting or at least hunting is not as visible as before. The keepers restrict production of the domesticated elephant: the number of elephants (under 20 years old) is very low (11 individuals), approximately eight percent (11/138), including four calves of domesticated elephants. Many domesticated elephants have become ill and some have died as a result of the neglect of the keepers, or food shortages in the pastures. The elephants have to work extremely hard, but there is a lack of proper veterinary care. Domesticated elephant trading and trading of their products are not closely controlled. The domesticated elephants are illegally hunted for ivory when they are in the forest.

Although the national laws and regulations prohibit anyone from hunting or catching elephants, law enforcement is weak and punitive action rare. Only one percent of the actual number of incidents has led to prosecution and punishment, whilst there has been no case of prosecution over domesticated elephant killing, hunting or trading of their body parts.

In terms of domesticated elephants, there are no regulations prohibiting trade of elephants or their products/parts at any of the four levels of governance (national, provincial, district and commune). As administrative management is regulated by the local community, trading elephants and exchanging their products in the region are not controlled yet. Selling elephants to other provinces in the country is possible simply by obtaining official permission from the provincial level to the central level. Illegal elephant sales across the country's borders have not been controlled.

Hunting of wild elephants for domestication has continued despite the amendment of the national laws and regulations and actions to promote awareness of these laws. Conservation awareness and education activities have made little contribution in real terms to solving the problem.

In the past, the domesticated elephant played an important role in economic and cultural life, particularly within the ethnic minority societies (M'nong, Gia Rai, E De). Today, the domesticated elephant is more valuable in terms of ecotourism.

In 1991, the Ministry of Forestry commissioned FPDs to keep records of the number of elephants in their localities. Between 1992 and 2000, however, there was no assessment of the population status on a national scale. The information has been compiled over the course of many years with the financial assistance of foreign organizations, such as the embassies of the Netherlands and Switzerland. Fauna and Flora International - Indochina Programme (FFI-IP) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) have combined efforts with research institutes and universities in Viet Nam. The government has established a protected area network, including national parks with the purpose of protecting elephants.

Three international conferences have been organized in Hanoi, aimed at formulating an action plan to save the elephant from extinction in Viet Nam.

Recommendations

1. Yok Don (Dak Lak province): Priority A

1) Expand Yok Don National Park, and establish a long-term species reserve along the boundary, including Ea Sup district, Boun Don district, Cu Jut district and one part of the remaining forest in Dak Mil. Connect this complete area with part of the forest in the southwest of Gia Lai province to create a corridor for movement of elephants. The range of this future elephant reserve needs to be surveyed before further decisions are made.

2) Strengthen co-operation with neighbouring Cambodia for elephant conservation.

3) Minimize human-elephant conflicts (HEC) in the area by providing support for people who are impacted, combine with conflict avoidance and conservation awareness/education.

4) Conduct long-term planning of human development, restricting spontaneous immigration to conserve existing forest areas.

5) Relocate the Binh Thuan herd into the area to avoid further HEC. This population should augment and strengthen the existing population in Dak Lak.

2. Pu Mat Nature Reserve (Nghe An province): Priority A

This reserve is about 90 000 ha, and human habitation is not dense. The reserve is located along the border with Laos. The elephant population consists of two to three groups with 13 to 17 individuals.

1) Strengthen elephant management, especially in the buffer zones. Stop hunting for ivory and timber cutting immediately.

2) Mitigate human-elephant conflict in Anh Son, Thanh Chuong districts on the Southern part of the reserve.

3. Tra Mi - Tien Phuoc - Que Son: Priority B

At present, there are two herds of elephants with 13 to 16 individuals. In these regions, human habitation is very dense with many rice fields. Consequently HEC levels are intensifying.

1) Plan human habitations and cultivated areas. Population growth should be controlled and reduced to protect the forest for elephant habitation. Local awareness programme for forest protection should be conducted.

2) Mitigate human-elephant conflict in the area. Support the local people who are suffering from conflict and crop raiding. Increase local people's awareness of elephant protection.

3) Prevent hunting for ivory or killing for revenge when the victim of elephant-human conflicts.

4) Elephants are now on the brink of extinction, in situ conservation is the best solution for elephant protection. In some cases where in situ conservation is impossible, relocate elephants to Song Thanh - Dac Pring Nature Reserve. But, this requires very careful and detailed surveys to be carried out beforehand.

4. Carry out a feasibility study on how to relocate the elephants in Tanh Linh (Binh Thuan province) to the Yok Don Nature Reserve.

5. Seek the participation of all international conservation organizations, all the local relevant bodies and agents of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Forest Protection Department, provincial FPDs, institutes, universities, colleges in one coherent action plan for the conservation of elephants.

6. Conduct a fund-raising programme from international organizations to implement the conservation plan.

7. Strengthen the management of domesticated elephants by taking the following measures:

• Request registration of domesticated elephants;

• Issue policies supporting mahouts;

• Study nutrition, breeding and veterinary care for sick and injured elephants;

• Support mahouts using domesticated elephants for tourists to improve income levels;

• Manage the ivory market of domesticated elephants;

• Create measures for the protection of domesticated elephants while they are left in the forest; and

• Strengthen law enforcement to apprehend and punish persons guilty in killing elephants.

References

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Question and answer session

Q1: What is the attitude of ordinary people in Viet Nam regarding elephants? Do elephants get much attention in the media?

A1: Formerly people thought they were useful animals but now there are not many jobs for them, so people do not think of them so positively.

The representative of IFF stated that he did not think that the lack of jobs for elephants was a problem in Viet Nam. Tourism companies are increasing and they are using elephants. In fact, the price of an elephant is going up and some of the tribal people are selling off their elephants to tourism companies. It is the educated Vietnamese who start the companies and buy elephants from the tribal people. Mr Kashio stated that it was important to investigate the nature of these tourism businesses because although we know they provide jobs for the elephants we don't know how well the elephants are treated and we don't know how well those involved in the business as mahouts, etc. are paid.

On the subject of tourism, one participant working in Belize in Central America stated that in Belize the government has imposed a conservation tax of 7.50 Belize dollars on all tourists that is used directly for environmental conservation. He recommended this for other countries like Indonesia. Richard Lair stated that he didn't think this would work in large countries with many government agencies as they would all squabble about who gets the money.

Q2: Do some of the elephants in Viet Nam come from Cambodia?

A2: Some of the tribal people and Chinese sell Vietnamese elephants to Cambodia and Thailand.