Elephants in Tourism. Sustainable and Practical Approaches to Captive Elephant Welfare and Conservation in Thailand

Malikhao, Patchanee; Servaes, Lisa

doi:10.1007/978-981-10-4125-9_9

Cited by 11 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…When looking at tourism's effect on captive wildlife, findings confirm past studies that found an increase in tourists seeking more ethical animal tourism activities [59,70]. In response to the new 'ethical tourism' market, rescue centres are emerging across Southeast Asia [71,72], many of which are illegitimate. They put legitimate centres under immense pressure to comply with the demand for animal interactions rather than operating in the animals' best interest.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the ‘Disposal’ of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Rivera

Knight

McCulloch

2021

Animals

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Increased focus on the illegal global wildlife trade has resulted in greater numbers of live animals confiscated by authorities, increasing the need to manage these animals responsibly. Most wildlife seizures take place in Southeast Asia, with global demand for live animals fuelling much of the trafficking. Guidelines for the ‘disposal’ of live specimens are provided by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), although individual Parties must implement provisions through national laws and regulations. ‘Disposal’ is the term used for the management of illegally traded wildlife upon confiscation. Confiscated live animals can be euthanised (i.e., killed), repatriated to their native country and released, or kept in captivity. This study investigates barriers to proper care and disposal of confiscated live animals in Southeast Asia, where roughly one quarter of the global multibillion dollar illegal wildlife trade takes place. Interviews were conducted with 18 professionals working within conservation, wildlife crime, and confiscated live animal management. Eight limitations to the proper care and disposal of confiscated wildlife were identified: (1) political will, (2) policy, (3) funding, (4) capacity, (5) expertise (6) attitudes and behaviours, (7) exploitation, and (8) corruption. Based on interviews, we propose seven key reforms to support the efficient and humane management of illegally traded wildlife for national authorities and CITES parties. These are wildlife seizure management, legislative support, enhanced political will, demand reduction, global participation, registry of rescue centres, and terminology change. This research highlights major barriers to the proper care and disposal of live confiscated animals and proposes key reforms to improve the conservation of threatened species and the welfare of millions of illegally traded animals.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the ‘Disposal’ of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Rivera

Knight

McCulloch

2021

Animals

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“…Approximately, 2300 captive elephants are employed in the tourism industry of Thailand with 135 elephant camps and tourist establishments which vary by size and activity [53]. Some of the documented camp effects may be related to the number of tourists, and the effect of the tourist season could influence the levels of fGCM in captive Asian elephants.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites in captive Asian elephants in Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand

Nokkaew

Intarapuk

Sakulthai³

et al. 2022

Vet World

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Background and Aim: Over the past two decades, the number of elephant camps in Thailand has increased considerably, and captive elephants have become more popular within the tourism industry. Tourist activities involving elephant exhibitions and trekking potentially affect animal health and welfare. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between a novel stress biomarker, fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCM), and various factors (sex, age, weather season, tourist season, and elephant usage patterns), monitoring the fGCM concentration during and after trekking activities ceased. Materials and Methods: Fecal samples of 20 captive Asian elephants from two camps in Kanchanaburi Province were collected monthly for 1 year. The fGCM concentrations were measured using enzyme immunoassay and evaluated relative to individual demography, season, and tourist trekking activity. The mean differences of fGCMs concentrations were compared by analysis of variance and t-test statistics according to data types with p<0.5. Results: Significant differences in mean fGCM concentrations were found between age categories (p=0.001), trekking and non-trekking animals (p=0.039), and during and after trekking (p=0.023). The mean fGCM concentration of elephants aged during 0-44 years (136.7 ng/g) was significantly higher than for animals over 44 years old (107.7 ng/g), and the elephant trekking group (144.9 ng/g) was significantly higher than the other group (124.7 ng/g). Within the trekking group, the mean fGCM concentrations gradually declined to 129.13 ng/g within 8 months of trekking cessation. Conclusion: Elephant's ages and activities co-influenced the variance of fGCM concentrations. In addition, permanent tourist activity, especially trekking, can increase elephant stress. This study's findings can be applied to the health status monitoring of captive elephants and result in improved animal welfare.

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“…Furthermore, 48% of bulls in the U.S. had a BCS = 4, whereas no bulls in Thailand had an average BCS of 4 or 5 over the study period, although a few scored up to 4.5 in individual months. This could be due to higher amounts of exercise, with tourist elephants engaged in many activities, including trekking, bathing, shows or walking with tourists [34], so inactivity is less of a concern. This result is consistent with a study of female 295 Asian elephants in Thailand where most (~60%) had a BCS = 3 [11], although compared to males, females had on average higher BCSs than males (3.50  0.02 vs 2.80  0.04; GEE, p<0.001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of season, tourist activities and camp management on body condition, testicular and adrenal steroids, lipid profiles, and metabolic status in captive bull elephants in Thailand

Khonmee

Norkaew

Brown

et al. 2018

Preprint

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We previously found relationships between body condition and physiological function affecting health and welfare of female tourist camp elephants in Thailand, and used that approach to conduct a similar study of bulls elephants in the same camps (n = 13). Elephants received a body condition 30 score (BCS) every other month, and fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) concentrations were measured in twice monthly samples for 1 year. Effects of season, camp management and tourist activity on lipid profiles [total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoproteins (LDL), high density lipoproteins (HDL), triglycerides (TG)] and metabolic factors [insulin, glucose, fructosamine, glucose to insulin ratio (G:I)] were determined and correlated to measures of body condition, 35 testosterone and adrenal function. Positive correlations were found between BCS and TG, between FGM and TG, HDL and glucose, and between testosterone and HDL (p<0.05), whereas BCS and testosterone were both negatively associated with the G:I (p<0.05). Elevated FGM concentrations were associated with altered lipid profiles and metabolic status and were higher in winter compared to summer and rainy seasons. Insulin and glucose levels were higher, while the G:I was lowest, in 40 the winter season. Strong positive associations (p<0.001) were found between TC and HDL, LDL and HDL and glucose, and glucose and insulin. By contrast, negative relationships (p<0.001) were found between the G:I and HDL and glucose, and between insulin and G:I. Differences also were found between High and Low tourist season months for FGM, insulin, and G:I, which may be related to tourist activities. Last, there was notable variation among the camps in measured 45 parameters, which together with the tourist season effect suggests camp management related to tourism may affect physiological function and welfare; some negatively like feeding high calorie treats, but others are positively, like exercise. Last, compared to females, bulls elephants appear to be in better physical health. 3 50 Introduction The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) has been listed as endangered in Appendix 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES 2018) since 1973, with wild populations declining in several range countries. Some captive elephant populations in Asia also are not sustaining, due in part to low reproductive and high mortality rates.55 As elephants are a long-lived species that produce only a few calves in their lifetime, it is important to better understand factors affecting health and reproduction to prevent further population declines.Considerable information now is available about the basic biology of elephants, especially the reproductive physiology of females, while bulls have received comparatively less attention (e.g.,[1]). 60In recent years, studies have focused on associations between health and reproduction in captive elephants, particularly females, with problems linked at least in part to obesity because of too little exercise, diets tha...

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Elephants in Tourism. Sustainable and Practical Approaches to Captive Elephant Welfare and Conservation in Thailand

Cited by 11 publications

References 6 publications

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the ‘Disposal’ of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the ‘Disposal’ of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Study of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites in captive Asian elephants in Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand

Influence of season, tourist activities and camp management on body condition, testicular and adrenal steroids, lipid profiles, and metabolic status in captive bull elephants in Thailand

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