Some 400 to 600 Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List of Threatened Species have been recorded in Cambodia’s forests.

The Ministry of Environment shared the figure in a news release today, adding that images captured by the camera also show small baby elephants in the herds, reflecting the reproduction and presence of small wild elephants that will sustain the presence of wild elephants in the protected areas.

Wild elephants mostly live in the Cardamom Mountains, the northern plateau of Tonle Sap River and the eastern highlands in Mondulkiri and Rattanakiri provinces, which are rich in biodiversity and has a favourable slope for the habitat of elephants and other animals, it said.

The same source pointed out that the number of domestic elephants is estimated at more than 70.

The ministry also underlined Cambodia’s active participation in the conservation of the world’s remaining Asian elephants, saying that the country has adopted the ten-year Asian Elephant Conservation Action Plan for Cambodia 2020-2029 which requires a budget of US$40.5 million. AKP