A little elephant, a lot of land
The WWF and M&S are working together to improve the future of the Borneo Pygmy Elephant.
Significantly smaller than other Asian elephants, the Borneo pygmy elephant can still reach 2.5m in height, and has relatively larger ears, a longer tail and is chubbier than its cousins from other countries. These differences, along with its more gentle nature, have developed during the 300,000 years it has been separated from other elephants.
However, very little is yet known about the pygmy elephant – not even how many there are. Estimates put its population at around 1,000, all found in north-east Borneo.
To learn more about them, WWF tagged five pygmy elephants with satellite tracking collars. The findings show that they require large feeding grounds, where an adult can eat up to 150kg of food every day – feeding mostly on palms, grasses and wild bananas.
During the past 40 years, 40% of the forests in the area where most pygmy elephants live has been lost to logging, human settlement and conversion into plantations – particularly to produce palm oil, which is used in common products like hand lotion, ice cream and chocolate.
To address the unsustainable practices of palm oil production, the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was established, of which WWF and M&S are both members. From November 2007, oil palm plantations that meet RSPO principles will receive certification. If Borneo’s environment and species are to be better protected, it is vital that more and more plantations become members of the RSPO and obtain certification.
Further protection will follow an historic agreement to conserve rainforests in the Heart of Borneo across an area larger than the UK, which was signed in 2007 by the island’s three governments after a three-year campaign by WWF.
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