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7h ago

India’s First DNA Elephant Census Finds 22,446 Wild Elephants

Officials say the genetic method marks a new baseline not comparable to 2017 counts.

Wild elephant numbers drop by 18%
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India is home to the majority of the world's remaining wild Asian elephants, like this herd bathing in Assam

Overview

  • The SAIEE 2021–25 report released Tuesday by the Wildlife Institute of India with the Environment Ministry estimates 22,446 elephants nationwide using a genetic mark–recapture approach.
  • Scientists analysed 21,056 dung samples to identify 4,065 individuals after 666,977 km of foot surveys and examinations at 319,460 dung plots.
  • Population is concentrated in the Western Ghats (11,934) and the North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra floodplains (6,559), with Karnataka hosting the largest state total at 6,013.
  • The estimate spans 18,255 to 26,645, and officials emphasize that the methodological shift establishes a new monitoring baseline rather than a direct comparison with past totals.
  • The report highlights fragmentation, plantations, mining and linear infrastructure as key pressures, noting electrocution and train collisions among major causes of deaths and urging corridor protection and mitigation.