In recent years, people have been making an increased effort to protect the wildlife of the world. Unfortunately, an incident in Sri Lanka has caused the death of a few more animals. BBC News is reporting that a train accident in Sri Lanka resulted in the death of four elephants. Three of them were babies.
Reports are saying that the animals were struck by a passenger train in the northern portion of the country. BBC News is also reporting that this railroad had recently been upgraded and expanded. The train now runs through a jungle area in a place called Cheddikulam. This is one of many incidents that have taken place in Sri Lanka involving elephant deaths over the past several months. Officials and citizens are now becoming concerned because elephants are considered sacred by many in the area. The law of Sri Lanka also requires them to be protected as much as possible.
All four of the elephants involved in the incident died, but one of the deaths of the calves was particularly brutal. BBC News reports that investigators are also stating that one calf was dragged about 300 meters along the track after being struck. Wildlife officials will now be heading to the area to see if the railway will continue to be a problem for the animals in the area.
The Sri Lankan elephants are one of three subspecies of the elephant found in Asia. The population of the Asian elephant is drastically decreasing. They are listed as an endangered species along with their close relatives, the African elephant. In recent years, the Asian elephant has become even more endangered than the African elephant. Both still suffer from much killing, poaching, and habitat destruction.
Animals like these are slowly being eradicated from the earth. As technology continues to develop, people must consider how wildlife is being affected by these changes.
