Herds of elephants are followed by millions online in China

(CNN) – At least a dozen drones monitor them 24 hours a day. They are taken away by the police wherever they go. When they eat or sleep, millions of people watch them online.

For more than a week, China has been clinging to a new internet sense: 15 large herd Elephants Who are the robbers They are lost and devastating in the southwest of the country.

Millions of people have joined the live broadcast of Elephants, and they cover more 500 kilometers Across the country since their escape from a natural reserve in southern China last year.

Online, how elephants trampled crops, damaged more than a million dollars, roamed through cities, forcing residents to stay indoors.

No wonder some stars came out of the set. According to Chinese state media, the audience was particularly pleased with the group’s three chicks, including one born during the epic journey. Global Times.

More than 8 million people this week watched a video showing a calf trapped under an adult elephant during a group sleep near the town of Kunming in southwestern Yunnan province. Another video showed baby elephants stumbling badly as they chased herds in a field, while another showed a calf diving into a pond while trying to drink water.

“Will they be cold when they sleep?” A user on the Weibo social network was worried when pictures of Pack’s sleep went viral. “I want to tie them under a duvet,” he said.

Human stars tried to use the popularity of elephants. According to Global TimesInternet figures rushed to get the remaining corn and pineapple held by authorities in rural areas to try to drive the elephants out of the cities. The store’s report states that the released videos show people collecting and eating pineapples in an attempt to obtain the following.

It is not yet clear why the elephants travel north. Some argued that less Rainforest May have caused eviction at home. Others say it will simply get lost, which makes elephant fans anxious online.

“It is very sad that we do not know when they will reach their goal,” another user wrote on Webo.

Degraded environment

There is also a very serious side to the elephant show. Biologists see the situation as a warning of what will happen if these animal habitats deteriorate.

Asian elephants are considered a protected species in China. Xinhua says about 300 of them live in Yunnan.

In recent decades, agriculture has decimated the habitat of elephants, causing herds to be fragmented and isolated in smaller and smaller areas, according to an article published. Natural. Many elephants are forced to feed on farmland for food, which has led to an increase in human-elephant conflict over the past 10 years, something officials are clearly aware of.

The elephant herd in China has destroyed $ 1.1 million, particularly from crop damage.

Authorities have tried to keep the elephants away from populated areas to avoid clashes. At the end of May, they set up a 24-hour command center to monitor the elephants.

But Zhang Li, a wildlife biologist and professor at Beijing University of Nature, said the only way to prevent future elephant emissions was to restore their habitats and protect natural resources. Global Times.

“The traditional buffer zones between humans and elephants are gradually disappearing, and the chances of elephants encountering humans naturally are greatly increased,” Zhang said.

With information from Jesse Young.