Over 380 Elephants killed in 2024

• Many of the elephants killed were young elephants

By Sheain Fernandopulle

Sri Lanka witnessed the death of 386 elephants in 2024 due to an array of causes, according to the Department of Wildlife Conservation.

An official from the department told Daily Mirror that these deaths include 81 from gunshots, 56 from electrocution, 51 from explosives hidden in food (‘hakka patas’), seven from poisoning, 11 from train accidents, 10 from drowning, and seven from falling into agro-wells.

Other deaths were due to natural causes or unidentified reasons. Most of the elephants that died were young.

According to statistics, the human-elephant conflict has also caused 154 human deaths this year, leading to a total of 540 deaths of both humans and elephants in 2024.

In 2023, this conflict resulted in 488 elephant deaths and 184 human deaths, according to the Wildlife Department.
The human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka has reached critical levels, driven by habitat destruction, encroachment, and the lack of sustainable solutions for coexistence.