Efforts by the Forest Department to reunite a 15-day-old male elephant calf found abandoned near Anaikattii with its mother have failed.
The calf is being fed it with baby food, glucose, tender coconuts, vitamins, and mineral supplements.
A team of skilled elephant trackers ventured into the forest to search for its mother and came across a herd that consisted of four female elephants. The calf was taken near to the herd and the team left the place. But the calf returned indicating that it did not belong to the herd.
Then the search continued. At dusk, the team gave up their efforts and brought the calf to a place closer to Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History, and created a crawl for housing it. If efforts to locate its mother fail, the Forest Department has to make arrangements to lodge it elsewhere. A decision in this regard will have to be taken by Chief Wildlife Warden in Chennai. The calf may be taken to Arignar Anna Zoological Park at Vandalur in Chennai. Earlier, a one-day-old calf was found abandoned near Mettuppalayam on December 13, 2010. The calf was sent to Arignar Anna Zoological Park. But the calf died owing to lack of immunity, as it was not fed by the mother since its birth.
