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Sri Lanka Is The Country With The Highest Number Of Elephant Deaths In The World

Villagers are watching the dead elephant on May 20, 2023, in Habarana, Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan wild elephant, known by its scientific name Elephas maximus maximus, is reported to have over 7,000 across Sri Lanka according to the Wildlife Department. Humans clearing forests and building settlements have caused elephants to lose their habitat, leading them to visit elephant villages frequently and creating an elephant-human conflict. In 2022, 433 elephant deaths and 145 human deaths due to this conflict will have been reported, and from January 1 to April 25, 2023, 114 elephant deaths have been reported. The Wildlife Department reports that 34 elephant deaths have been reported from Anuradhapura district, 29 from Polonnaruwa district, and 19 from Eastern Province so far in 2023. In the year 2023, 36 people will have died due to elephant-human conflict. Sri Lankans have had a long relationship with elephants, taming and using them for cultural and religious activities since ancient times. Elephants have been used by man since the days of the kings of Sri Lanka, through the Portuguese and Dutch eras, and since then to the present day. Even today, these wild and domesticated elephants are useful for the development of Sri Lanka's tourism industry, with many tourists coming to Sri Lanka to see them and providing the country with a lot of foreign exchange. The human-elephant conflict begins with the arrival of humans in the area.

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