Rare elephant species seen in South Sudan
JUBA, South Sudan — A critically endangered elephant species has been photographed by researchers for the first time in South Sudan, significantly expanding the known range of the animal. But even in these remote central African forests, it faces threats from war and illegal logging.
Smaller than savanna elephants, the forest elephants were photo- graphed by cameras tied to trees in Western Equatoria state, a lush area near Congo and the Central African Republic.
“This is by far the most northerly herd of forest elephants that anyone has seen in Africa,” said Adrian Garside, co-leader of the study by Fauna & Flora International.
Forest elephant populations declined by 60 percent between 2002 and 2011, while losing 30 percent of their range in West and Central Africa, according to a 2013 study in scientific journal PLOS ONE.
The forest elephant has straighter tusks than its cousins and more rounded ears and head.
The remotely activated cameras, set up over 3,000 square miles, also captured images of African golden cat, red river hog, giant pangolin and water chevrotain, which is like a small deer, all previously unrecorded in South Sudan, the group said.
“We are proving that there are expanses of habi- tat that is sort of pristine and unexplored, which is a very hopeful sign,” Garside said.
In other countries, forest elephants are under intense poaching pressure, said DeeAnn Reeder, co-leader of the new study and a biology professor at Pennsylvania’s Bucknell University. She said the greater threat in Western Equatoria is habitat loss.
South Sudan’s war has led to more poaching of elephants for meat and ivory.