Elephants Get Photo IDs

Elephants in India are getting their pictures taken by scientists who hope to establish a photo archive that will help save the majestic giants.

Over the span of nearly three months, researchers at the Wildlife Conservation Society and India’s Nature Conservation Foundation took more than 2,400 photographs of individual elephants. They also measured and recorded data on the ear shape, shoulder height, tail length, scars and tusk characteristics of the male elephants.

Such comprehensive profiles of male Asian elephants help conservationists monitor poaching rates over long periods. Also, elephant carcasses can be compared with archived photos to identify individual elephants and aid law enforcement.

“Unlike African elephants where both males and females have tusks, only male Asian elephants have valuable tusks, so they are specifically targeted by poachers,” said Varun Goswami of the Wildlife Conservation Society. “Our new method allows specific tracking of male elephant population dynamics, so it is a powerful conservation tool.”

—LiveScience Staff

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Credit: Sanjay Gubbi