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Herd of endangered Asian elephants captured on camera in Cambodia

Xinhua, January 16, 2016 Adjust font size:

A herd of at least 12 endangered Asian elephants, including young, has been caught grazing and roaming around the Cambodia's largest protected forest in a remarkable camera trap footage, according to the Conservation International's statement seen on Saturday.

The footage showed "the largest group of wild Asian elephants captured on film in the Central Cardamom Protected Forest (CCPF) over the past decade", the CI said in the statement on Friday.

For over 14 years, CI has worked closely with the Cambodian government to protect this forest -- critical to supporting the lives and livelihoods of 3.5 million people in the Cardamom Mountain range, and fisheries and agriculture downstream, it said.

"Seeing a productive herd like this in the CCPF further confirms to us that this conservation program, Cambodia's oldest and largest, is working," said Tracy Farrell, Regional Director of CI's Greater Mekong Program.

The Cardamom Mountains hold one of the largest wild populations left in Southeast Asia although direct evidence of large herds in this protected area, which spans 401,313 hectares, is hard to come by due to their elusive nature.

The footage, captured late last year, was released as CI together with the Cambodia's Forestry Administration launched a conservation trust fund for CCPF, the statement said, adding that the fund was created with an initial 2.5 million U.S. dollars from the Global Conservation Fund.

Bunra Seng, country director of CI Cambodia, said the funding goal is to raise 10 million U.S. dollars, which will generate enough capital to sustain the protected forest project in perpetuity.

"Illegal logging and wildlife poaching for trade and food, through to large scale agriculture and land clearing concessions are having devastating effects. The CCPF program aims to ensure no net loss of forest cover," he said.

So far, the protection efforts are tracking well as a 2012 independent review found this area to have only 2 percent forest loss compared to 15 percent in the 10-km buffer around it in the period from 2006-2012, the statement said.

Keo Oukmalis, director of the Wildlife Animals and Biodiversity Department at the Forestry Administration, said in Nov. 2014 that Cambodia is home to over 500 wild elephants. Enditem