Reunion bid fails, baby jumbo may be moved to camp, say Coimbatore foresters

COIMBATORE: As continuous efforts by the forest department to unite barely a month-old elephant calf with a herd went in vain, the Coimbatore forest division is mulling over shifting the animal to the elephant camp to be nursed.

The abandoned calf elephant was spotted near Thadagam a few days ago. The officials while attempting to identify and reunite the calf with its herd noticed an adult elephant dead a short distance away. The female elephant is believed to be its lactating mother.

Therefore, the forest department made several futile attempts to reunite the calf with various other herds in the nearby forest areas.

“Efforts to unite the calf with a herd were initiated again on Sunday. However, the herds were not welcoming to take along the baby jumbo. At least eight attempts were made so far to unite the calf with multiple herds,” explained an official.

During every attempt, the forest department personnel carefully examined certain aspects like the herd comprising a lactating mother so that the calf gets adopted. For nearly a week, the officials have been feeding the calf with formula milk and water as per the advice of veterinarians.

Mahouts from Kozhikamuthi Elephant Camp have arrived to take better care of the calf jumbo. “As all our efforts have failed, the calf jumbo is expected to be taken to the elephant camp to be nursed after getting the nod of senior authorities in our department,” said an official.