Just how much plastic waste wild elephants consume by accident has been revelead by a team of researchers in India who found what they call the “presence of anthropogenic waste” in a third of of the dung samples they collected from the edges and interiors of some forested areas where wild elephants roam. Pieces of glass, rubber, fabric and other waste materials were also found in the elephants’ dung. The findings of this research conducted in India are in line with what is known of the threats plastic waste poses to Asian elephants elsewhere throughout their ranges. In Thailand, for instance, several jumbos are known to have been sickened or died after they ingested plastic waste in protected areas. Local people can also do their part by separating food waste from containers so that elephants rooting in garbage dumps for food won’t accidentally swallow these plastic objects, they say.

Source: CNN May 27, 2022 06:47 UTC