On elephants and peppers

The amazing story of the elephants in Botswana, who, unlike their brothers in the rest of the world, thrive and multiply, so much so that local farmers are forced to plant hot peppers to keep them away from their fields

Racheli Vox, Angle - Science and Environment News Agency

On March 3 every year, the world celebrates International Wildlife Day, which aims to raise awareness of animals in the wild and encourage their conservation. In our daily lives we hardly ever encounter non-domesticated animals (and no, street cats don't count), and around the world wild animals are dwindling as man's influence expands.

However, in some areas wildlife is better off than others. Botswana in Africa is unique in that in this country the number of elephants (which are at risk in the rest of the world) is actually on the rise, thanks to the strict conservation policy that the country adheres to. In fact, the number of elephants in the country is so high that they have become a veritable agricultural pest. A new local initiative in Botswana is trying to keep elephants away from farmers' fields with a cheap and simple way that doesn't hurt either side: hot peppers.

The army protects the environment

The elephant is the largest land mammal on Earth and can weigh up to eight tons. Elephants are an essential part of the forest and savanna ecosystems in Asia and Africa, but in recent decades their existence has been under constant threat. The number of elephants in Africa drops by about 8 percent every year, and between the years 2014-2007 alone there was a decrease of about 30 percent in the number of elephants in the African savannah. The main reason for this is widespread illegal hunting for the purpose of harvesting the ivory from which the long tusks of elephants are made, the demand for which in Asia is increasing. Other reasons for the disappearance of elephants are conflicts with humans and loss of habitats.

Botswana, a country in the southern continent of Africa whose area is 26 times larger than the area of ​​Israel (but its population is only about two million people), is an unusual country in the African landscape. This is a prosperous democratic country, which has managed over the years to avoid with considerable success the sick evils that characterize most African countries: war, poverty and corruption. Botswana's economic situation is good thanks to the many diamonds in its territory, and its citizens make a living mainly from agriculture.

The uniqueness of Botswana is also expressed in the state of its elephants: about 130 thousand elephants live in Botswana - more than in any other country in the world, and unlike the global trend, the elephant population in the country actually increased by 53 percent in the last 20 years.

According to Prof. Amir Ily from the School of Zoology at Tel Aviv University, Botswana's good condition helps it conserve elephants effectively. "Everything is much more managed and organized in this aspect than other countries, because the country itself is much more managed and organized," he says. According to him, peace plays an important role in the equation. "Without wars, what is left for the army to do is to actively protect nature." The army, for its part, does not do tricks: whoever is caught shooting animals is himself shot by the soldiers.

Ili also says that all the ivory in Botswana is the property of the government, and when an elephant dies a natural death a government representative comes, collects its tusks and puts them in government warehouses. "The idea is that if there is no ivory then there will be no market," he says. In addition, contrary to the situation in other parts of the country, it was decided not to operate cellular and internet networks in the nature reserves - because these technologies serve illegal hunters.

Transfer to elephants

But the welcome increase in the number of elephants in Botswana has created a new problem: it is causing them to find their way into human habitations as well, creating conflicts with local farmers as the massive animal raids their fields. "There is almost no fence that elephants will not be able to pass," says Ili. In some cases, such encounters can be fatal to a human or an elephant.

One of the proposed solutions to this problem is to "transfer" elephants - moving them from Botswana to other countries, where the number of elephants is constantly decreasing. Ili says that in the past an attempt was made to move a herd of almost 100 elephants to Angola, in an operation that cost millions of dollars - but within three months the entire herd wandered back on foot the whole long way home, to Botswana.

Another proposed course of action, which has not been carried out to date, is a controlled killing of the elephants to control their population. There is much opposition to this option for obvious moral reasons. Apart from the significant humane consideration, this way is also problematic because of the enormous size of the elephants - there is no simple solution for the disposal and treatment of such large bodies.

Elephants and farmers refuse to be enemies

In light of the situation, last year a new initiative was launched in Botswana designed to create coexistence between the elephants and the farmers, and is based on an idea that has been tried with great success in other African countries: using chili peppers to keep the elephants away from the agricultural fields. The farmers can dry the peppers and then burn them in the evening, before the elephants come to eat, or simply grow them in the fields. The peppers repel the elephants due to their smell: smell is a very significant sense for elephants, who rely on it for their survival (as suggested by the famous long trunk and the multiple genes dedicated to this sense in their DNA). The chili peppers have a strong smell because they contain a high concentration of capsaicin - the compound that gives the pepper its spicy taste (which, as we know, can also repel many humans). The use of peppers is cheap and natural, and growing them may also be used as a secondary source of income.

Today, the project is the life's work of one leopard hunter: Oatesi (Otes) Nawa, a local and experienced safari guide. "I am also a farmer and a victim of elephants," Nawa says. "This is not something I just heard about, it is something that happens to me too." Today, Nawa himself goes from farm to farm and village to village, giving out free pepper seeds to farmers and teaching them how to use them and what to do if they encounter an elephant. "The farmers were not aware of the possibility of using hot peppers and they were not sure that it would work," he says. "It's all about education."

The initiative's only funding comes from buying Nava's T-shirts, which are appropriately adorned with an elephant surrounded by chili peppers. The shirts are sold through the "Oats Elephants" Facebook page or through Nava's email, ppgad@pucrs.brBesides, Nava has had to finance the entire initiative, from the chili seeds he distributes to the fuel he uses to travel to the various farmers, as best he can from his own pocket. "I have no financial support from anyone, so I have no choice but to pay for everything myself," he concludes.