WORLD FIRST - Elephants from UK to be Flown to Kenya and "Rewilded"

​www.cnn.com/travel/article/uk-elephants-zoo-kenya-scli-intl-gbr/index.html

13 elephants currently residing at Howlett's Wild Animal Park in Kent, England, are set to make a nearly 7, 000 km journey to Kenya where they will be released into the wild. The aim of the project is to discourage the global trade in elephants and encourage others to release them to the wild where possible. This will be the very first time in our history that elephants have been transported by air on a journey this long to be "rewilded". 

The advocacy / conservation group involved with the plan has stated that while there are risks associated with such a journey, the positives outweigh any risks associated and spoke to the success of a similar journey that involved 2 cheetahs. This would be the first time that any of these 13 elephants has stepped foot in the wild having been born in captivity. Elephants deserve the opportunity to thrive in the wild and those that are confined simply do not have the quality of life that they are entitled to. While I strongly support the release of any captive elephants, I also have some concerns.

Poaching of elephants continues to be an issue throughout Africa while conflicts with humans continue to rise. Elephants are facing habitat loss which is causing them to trample through village sin search of food and water. These conflicts can result in elephant injuries or worse, even death as elephants struggle to find food and water. Their habitat continues to shrink as human growth continues at a rapid pace which means more land will continue to be taken from them. I find myself wondering with all of the perils that elephants are facing in their natural habitats, will they truly thrive once released? These are elephants that have only ever know contact with humans so I fear that they will be unable to adapt to the perils that humans have caused for them. 

I want to believe that they will be safe and will thrive once they reach Kenya, but as I report frequently on stories from Africa involving poaching and the illegal wildlife trade, I fear that there's a possibility that these elephants could end up as casualties of the poaching industry. While numbers continue to go down in terms of elephants poached on an annual basis, the fact is that the illegal wildlife trade is thriving and ivory continues to dominate the black market. While these factors continue to be prevalent, elephants are not safe and will be in continued danger of being executed. Especially in the case of relatively tame elephants, will they understand the dangers they face or will the simply be easy targets for poachers?

It's hard not to be cynical considering the dangers elephants continue to face. While I strongly support the release of any captive elephants, I also worry for their safety. I applaud the UK and advocacy groups involved in this initiative and I will update on this story as more information becomes available.

What do y'all think? Do you think these elephants will be safe or do you believe that their human interaction through the years will make them susceptible to being poached?

HAPPY VEG