Tracking the movements of translocated Asian elephants in Peninsular Malaysia using GPS telemetry
Regen Jamieson, Zubaid Akbar, Ph.D., Keith Leggett, Ph.D., Thomas Husband, Ph.D. and David Augeri, Pd.D.(Denver Zoo)

Asian elephants are classified as Endangered by The World Conservation Union (IUCN) due to habitat loss and conflict with humans, and there are only estimated to be less than 35,000 Asian elephants left in the wild. The conflict between humans arises from elephants raiding plantations for food, causing millions of dollars of damage annually. Up until the 1960s, the Malaysian management strategy was to shoot crop-raiding elephants. In 1972, elephants were afforded full protection by the government and as an alternative to lethal control, they adopted a policy of translocating nuisance elephants from areas of conflict into protected parks. Since 1974, approximately 600 elephants have been moved in this manner. Translocation is a costly and labor-intensive undertaking, yet there is little data on post-release movements of translocated elephants to determine its success.

Due to this species' status in the wild, Denver Zoo helps fund this important conservation project. The goal of this study is to better understand what these elephants do after they are released. Do they survive the translocation process? Do they remain within the boundaries of the protected areas? To they begin to raid crops adjacent to the park? Do they attempt to home back to where they were originally captured? Do they join existing resident herds, groups of unrelated individuals, or remain alone in the novel environment? Do females react differently to translocation than males?

This study will use Global Positioning System (GPS) radio collars to monitor the post-translocation movements of six adult elephants, allowing the acquisition of location data in the dense and mountainous rainforests of Malaysia remotely. Collaring began in November 2006 and animals will be tracked for a minimum of one year to calculate ranges.

Resolving and minimizing human-elephant conflicts, particularly those associated with crop-raiding, remains a logistical, political and financial challenge. The results of this study will inform the design, success and sustainability of translocation programs, not only in Malaysia, but also in other countries where human-elephant conflict occurs.