News & Publications on Asian Rhinos & Elephants
17 Apr 2008
Extinct Javan elephants may have been found again - in Borneo
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia: The Borneo pygmy elephant may not be native to Borneo after all. Instead, the population could be the last survivors of the Javan elephant race – accidentally saved from extinction by the Sultan of Sulu centuries ago, a new publication suggests.
If the Borneo pygmy elephants are in fact elephants from Java, an island more than 1,200 km (800 miles) south of their current range, it could be the first known elephant translocation in history, providing scientists with critical data from a centuries-long experiment. » Read more
16 Apr 2008
Indian rhinos on the move to a better future
After centuries of having their range contracted to the point of extinction, India’s rhinos are on the move outwards again. In a difficult operation, two male rhinos were taken back to a national park in Assam’s Himalayan foothills last weekend.
The return was an emotional moment for local residents, who lost their last rhinos a decade ago during a 20 year period of civil disturbance that wrecked infrastructure in the famed Manas National Park and allowed poachers free reign. » Read more
04 Apr 2008
Rhino Rejuvenation - India's New Vision
The burgeoning numbers of rhinos crowded into Pobitora wildlife Sanctuary in North East India is, according to conservationists, a huge achievement and the result of strong anti poaching legislation and active community engagement. » Read more
10 Mar 2008
Celebrations in Tesso Nilo National Park - Flying Squad names its youngest member "Tesso"
Tesso Nilo National Park, Sumatra – An event was organized in WWF Indonesia’s Flying Squad Camp on March 1 to clelebrate the birth of the two elephant calves born there last year. About 80 guests helped Nella celebrate her 1st birthday, while her younger, three-month-old playmate was officially named ‘Tesso’. » Read more
04 Mar 2008
Chasing rhinos in Indonesia’s Ujung Kulon National Park
How hard can it be to catch a glimpse of a beast which can weigh 2,300kg and measure over 3m in length? As a WWF team discovered, it takes patience, skill and not a little ingenuity to capture the movements of this elusive giant on film. » Read more
26 Feb 2008
Pulp and palm oil the villains in Sumatra's global climate impact and local elephant losses
Pekanbaru, Sumatra: Turning just one Sumatran province's forests and peat swamps into pulpwood and palm oil plantations is generating more annual greenhouse gas emissions than the Netherlands and rapidly driving the province's elephants into extinction, a new study by WWF and partners has found. » Read more
06 Feb 2008
South Asian nations pledge cooperation on rampant wildlife trade
Kathmandu, Nepal – All eight South Asian nations have agreed to step up cooperation in addressing wildlife trade problems in the area, home to such rare and prized species as tigers, snow leopards, and one-horned rhinoceroses and recognized as one of the prime targets of international organized wildlife crime networks. » Read more
21 Dec 2007
New arrival in Tesso Nilo Flying Squad
Ria, a female flying squad elephant has given birth to a healthy baby elephant, the second new addition for the Tesso Nilo Flying Squad in 2007.
» Read more
26 Nov 2007
Kids discover Sumatran “treasures”
More than 100 of WWF-Indonesia’s Junior Conservationists turned out for a treasure hunt and day of fun to support endangered Sumatran elephants, tigers, rhinos and orang-utans. » Read more
20 Nov 2007
A rhino saved from poachers
An anti-poaching team mobilized by WWF's Terai Arc Landscape Programme has succeeded in saving a rhino from poachers in Chitwan. » Read more
