400 jumbo wreckers to be moved
2003-11-12 17:07
Nairobi - About 400 elephants are being moved to a larger park in southern Kenya after they trampled farms and demolished trees, said a Kenyan wildlife official on Wednesday.
Farmers near the Narok Game Reserve complain that elephants often stray from the park to eat their crops. The elephants also pose a danger to residents.
Wildlife officials say the reserve is too small for the 700 elephants that live there.
"They're eating too much and destroyed too many trees," said a Kenya Wildlife Service spokesperson.
The elephants are supposed to be transported to Kenya's Tsavo East National Park within the next five years.
It is one of the country's largest parks with more than 6 000 elephants. The move will cost nearly $20 000 dollars, officials estimate.
About 200 people have been killed by elephants in Kenya in the past seven years, according to the World Wildlife Fund. - Sapa-DPA
- SAPA