South Africa needs to consider restarting elephant culls as growing numbers of the large animals are threatening local habitats, the conservation group WWF has warned.
Rob Little, acting chief executive of WWF South Africa, told New Scientist that the method should only be used as a last resort but that some small parks in South Africa and parts of the large parks, including Kruger National Park, have reached the point where culling should be used.
Elephant numbers in protected areas have grown in the last 10 years, to the point where they are actually suppressing the habitat and vegetation, says Little.
"No wildlife manager likes to cull any species," he says. "But if any one of the species starts to dominate the food resource of other species or threaten the vegetation of an area, then something has to be done. We believe that the culling should be available as an option."
Little made his comments in advance of the South African government's unveiling of its new elephant management plan on Wednesday 28 February. WWF has made recommendations towards the plan, which is expected to include a resumption of culling to cut growing elephant numbers in the country's flagship Kruger National Park and in other reserves.
Over the past decade South Africa has tried to manage growing elephant numbers in the country through transferring herds to new areas (see World's biggest elephant relocation begins), expanding protected areas, and giving elephants contraception.
"But unfortunately, because of a lack of space for new protected areas, we are approaching saturation in many of the parks," Little says. Contraception is really only an option in small parks because it requires a lot of individual attention: elephants need to be identified, given the contraceptive, and followed up a year later.
According to government scientists, the elephant populations at Kruger have swelled to well over 12,000 since culling was stopped in 1994 following a public outcry. Numbers have also risen in other smaller parks.
In 2006, South Africa postponed a controversial policy to resume culling elephants in Kruger because of opposition from some conservationists. These groups say the practice, which involves the rounding up and shooting of entire family groups, is cruel.
Some critics also question the validity of the science used to justify elephant culls. They argue that other plant-eating animals, which are smaller in size but exist in bigger numbers, would move into areas left vacant by slaughtered elephants and have a similar impact on vegetation.
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