Sri Lankan Elephants

Elephants in Sri Lanka are different than those in Africa. Asian elephants have no tusks, shorter ears, rounded backs and smoother darker skin. The ends of their trunks are shaped in a “one finger” shape and they use the underside of their trunks to hold objects. Sri Lankan elephants usually live in a herd of 15 animals in national parks and each could eat up to 15kg of greens, mostly grass.

Srí Lanské slony sú ázijského typu bez klov, s kratšími ušami, tmavšou kožou, plochším chrbtom a jednoprstým chobotom (to len tak pre porovnanie s Africkými slonmi, keby ste nevedeli). Pokračujte v slovenčine tu.

Sinhalese kings protected elephants, but the British hunted and killed thousands during their colonial era in 19th century. For Buddhists and Hunduists, elephants symbolise courage and strength. They also believe that elephants in the vicinity of temples bring prosperity and luck.

In the past, elephants were used for transport, at construction sites or during executions. Today, they can be seen helping in wood transport and, of course, in tourism.

Nowadays, there is less and less space for elephants and so they venture closer to people and villages. They are large, have big appetite and can damage crops, houses and may sometimes kill someone. To prevent this, they are being re-homed into sanctuaries and national parks, like Uda Walawe in the south, for example, where my pictures are taken at.