A baby elephant caught in a snare was rescued within the Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary before being sent for further treatment at Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre in Takeo province on December 9. Sitheng Try
A five-month-old male elephant rescued from a snare in Mondulkiri province was transported to the Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre in Takeo province for medical treatment on December 9.
Weighing approximately 200kg, the baby elephant was discovered by community members near the central station of the Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary on December 8. The Wildlife Alliance (WA) team quickly intervened to address its injuries.
Try Sitheng, an official from WA, reported that upon their arrival in Mondulkiri, the team fed milk to the elephant, administered IV fluids to strengthen it and provided initial treatment for its snare wounds.
“Its health is stable and not critical. The snare injured its right front leg, and while the wound is severe, we’ve taken the first steps in treatment,” he said.
The elephant was transferred to Phnom Tamao on the night of December 9 for specialised care.
Din Bunthoeun, acting director of the Mondulkiri Provincial Department of Environment, explained that the severity of the injury necessitated expert treatment to prevent further complications.
“The wound has exposed flesh and is infected, emitting a bad odour. We are concerned about bacterial infections, as we lack the expertise to monitor it here. Treatment is expected to take three to six months,” he said, adding that the snare was likely intended for other wildlife but accidentally caught the elephant.
Despite regular awareness campaigns to discourage illegal snaring, Bunthoeun noted that some individuals continue to set indiscriminate traps.
“We conduct regular education programmes, and most residents understand. However, these traps, often intended for wildlife, can capture anything, including unintended animals or even humans,” he remarked.
He added that the department plans annual awareness and conservation activities, with a focus on community engagement to prevent such incidents.
On December 8, rangers from the Lomphat Wildlife Sanctuary found a baby elephant running along a dirt road near the central station in Memom village of Roya commune in Mondulkiri’s Koh Nhek district, seemingly seeking help, according to the provincial environment department.
The rangers surrounded and captured the elephant, carefully examining its injury – a snare wound on its right front leg. Despite the injury, they reported that the elephant was in good health and remained strong.
An ethnic Kuy community member, Ponleu Rasmey, shared a video on Facebook on December 9 showing the trapped elephant in distress. The two-minute clip was captioned, “What kind of heart allows this? Even critically endangered baby elephants aren’t spared.”
The video depicts the baby elephant crying as around 10 community members worked to free it from the cable snare. They held its head, legs and ears to prevent movement while cutting the snare, reassuring the elephant with comforting words, “Don’t cry, we’re here to help.”
In a similar incident in November, a two-year-old female elephant weighing approximately 300kg was transported to Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre for care after being separated from its herd for nearly two weeks in Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary, also in Mondulkiri.
